The Ninth Chevron
by ShaViva
Summary: "I'm still investigating but the sheer number and spread of these problems is pointing to something seriously wrong with the city," Rodney reported grimly. Team Sheppard must travel further than ever before to save Atlantis. New stand alone story COMPLETE
1. That's a lot of issues McKay

**The Ninth Chevron**

Author: ShaViva

Rating: K+

Content Warning: some minor violence is pretty much it

Season: could be any time really but with Elizabeth and Carson still there I decided it was Season 3, after 'Echoes' but before 'Tao of Rodney'

Summary: "I'm still investigating but the sheer number and spread of these problems is pointing to something seriously wrong with the city," Rodney reported grimly. Team Sheppard must travel further than ever before in their efforts to save Atlantis.

Classifications: It's an adventure/action story focussed on the team, team friendship etc.

Pairings: None

Spoilers for: Minor spoilers for season 2 'The Tower'; very minor spoilers for season 3 'Echoes'; very minor 'history of the Ori' spoilers – nothing I could link to a specific SG1 episode though.

Disclaimer: The Stargate characters, storylines, etc aren't mine – I'm just playing with them for my own, and hopefully _your_ enjoyment. I am unfortunately not associated in any way with the creators, owners, or producers of Stargate or any of its media franchises. All publicly recognizable characters, settings, equipment, etc are the property of whoever owns them. Any original characters, plot, settings, and anything else I made up are the property of me, the author. No copyright infringement is intended.

Copyright (c) 2008 ShaViva

**Authors Note:**

I came up with this idea after reading that the third Stargate TV series was going to have something to do with the ninth chevron ... this is how I imagine a new series could start, except with the Atlantis cast instead of a new one :D. I haven't read any ninth chevron stuff before so apologies if this has already been done.

This story has no connection to either my Sabina series or my Sheplantis series ... I'm using a couple of what might seem like similar plot tools though. If you've read those other stories then close your eyes ... concentrate ... and wipe your mind of everything that went on there ... ready? Okay, let's get on with the story!

**Chapter 1: That's a lot of issues McKay**

"_Crap!_" Lt Colonel John Sheppard jumped back from his door with a curse. Shaking the hand that was now numb from the electric shock he'd just received he tapped his radio earpiece.

"McKay," he almost growled. "I just got another shock from my door controls - I thought you fixed that!"

"I did," Rodney protested.

"No you didn't," Sheppard insisted. "Get down here and have another look."

"I'm not your local electrician," Rodney said sarcastically. "I'll put your ... request on the maintenance schedule. We'll get to you as soon as we've fixed the fifty other minor problems already on the list."

"And what am I supposed to do in the meantime?" Sheppard demanded.

"Stay out of your room," Rodney said unhelpfully, closing off the channel before Sheppard could say anything else.

Grumbling under his breath about arrogant scientists Sheppard took the risk and swiped his hand over the door controls again, relaxing the muscles he'd tensed in preparation of the shock when the door opened smoothly.

x

"Doctor McKay?" Teyla approached Rodney with an expression that was frankly a little scary. Rodney, distracted with the latest problem requiring a solution, didn't notice.

"Not now," he glanced up quickly before looking down at his data pad again.

"Yes _now_," Teyla insisted. "This is the third morning in a row where I have been unable to complete my morning shower without being almost scalded by suddenly hot water. I have twice reported this issue but _nothing_ has been done."

"I sent someone down there to look at that," Rodney explained impatiently. "They should have fixed it."

"They did not," Teyla said sternly. "I would appreciate it if you could attend to this matter _personally_."

Rodney opened his mouth to protest the multitude of other similar requests he already had backlogged but the look in Teyla's eyes stopped him before any words could get out. "Fine," he agreed grumpily. "I'll get to it as soon as I can ... in the mean time I suggest you use a different shower."

"Thank you Rodney," Teyla smiled graciously before turning and walking away.

Door controls and showers ... was that what his brilliant scientific career had been reduced to? Rodney shook his head glumly before turning back to his data pad.

x

"Doctor McKay, can you come down to the hologram room please?" Doctor Weir's tone was reasonable but Rodney found himself thinking 'what now?'. It had been a very busy week and he was tired and grumpy, even by _his_ standards.

"Have we made any changes to the holographic system lately?" Doctor Weir asked when he arrived.

"No," Rodney denied with a frown. "Why? What happened?"

"Look - it might be nothing," Elizabeth admitted. "I was following up on some information Doctor Jackson requested and the system gave me different information than the last time. When I queried the earlier answers there was no record that I'd even asked previously."

"That's not right," Rodney protested in a tone that almost suggested Elizabeth had gotten it wrong somehow. "The system is designed to keep an accurate record of all requests made from here." He stepped up on the dais and accessed the manual controls ... a moment later the holographic Morgan Le Fay appeared.

"Hello," the hologram said regally. "You may enter your query verbally or by entering it manually on the console before you."

"Please display a record of Doctor Weir's usage of your system over the past month," Rodney requested.

Lines of information appeared on the 'in air' display. Looking to Elizabeth, Rodney asked "is that right ... is anything missing?"

Elizabeth looked carefully at each record, frowning by the time she got to the end of the list. "There are at least another two visits I can recall that aren't on that list."

"When were they?" Rodney queried, listening carefully and then requesting a record of system status during those specific times.

"This system was inactive during that period," the hologram replied imperiously to each.

"Okay, there's some kind of memory access issue here," Rodney muttered, stepping down from the dais. Ripping his laptop off his back he proceeded to plug in and access the system directly. Glancing up at Elizabeth he advised "Don't hang around - this could take a while."

Doctor Weir watched for a few moments as Rodney started accessing the system records for the hologram program. Frowning worriedly she turned and left him to his work.

x

"We have a problem," Rodney walked into the conference room where everyone else was already waiting for him. Calling up a schematic of the city he punched a few buttons that resulted in an alarming number of red crosses appearing spread throughout the entire occupied part of Atlantis. "This is a record of the locations of all the minor issues we've had lately."

"That's a lot of issues McKay," Sheppard pointed out.

"More than can be explained by any kind of random situation," Rodney agreed. "I'm still investigating but the sheer number and spread of these problems is pointing to something seriously wrong with the city."

"What could possibly be causing all all of them?" Doctor Weir demanded in concern.

"If I knew that I'd be down there fixing it instead of up here telling you about it," Rodney said sarcastically. "I've got all my people on this ... as soon as we've isolated the cause I'll let you know. In the mean time I suggest you inform everyone to be very careful ... we haven't had any serious injuries yet but if this continues it's only a matter of time."

"I'll do a city wide announcement," Weir acknowledged the seriousness of the problem. "Is there anything we can do to offer some protection from the worst of the problems?"

"Not really," Rodney admitted. "The spread is just too wide to allow any kind of prediction on where future incidents might occur."

"Then we need to get this resolved as soon as possible," Weir said with concern.

"I'm on it," Rodney confirmed, getting the nod from Elizabeth before turning to stride from the room.

x

"What's the status McKay?" Sheppard walked into the lab the next day for an update.

"I still don't know what the problem is but I've got a better handle on all the symptoms," Rodney replied, drawing John's attention to his laptop display. "I've done a breakdown of the various types of problems. You've had personal experience with the minor electrical shocks, but we've also had memory access issues, random reboots and trouble accessing some systems, a few small brownouts, even some hardware failures. The biggest concern right now is the decreased power efficiency coupled with an increase in the internal temperature within the power supply unit."

"What does that mean?" Sheppard asked impatiently.

"The Atlantis systems work like any Earth based system," Rodney explained. "The ZedPM is the power source but it doesn't power the systems directly. There's a PSU - a power supply unit - which is designed to convert the power from the ZedPM into usable low-voltage power for the internal components of all the systems."

"And something's wrong with this PSU?" Sheppard queried.

"To be honest I don't know," Rodney admitted. "The problem might be somewhere else and just be manifesting in symptoms within the PSU or the PSU itself could be the source of everything."

"How come we didn't notice this sooner?" Sheppard looked at Rodney expectantly.

"Because none of these problems by itself is a cause for concern," Rodney exclaimed. "Some were reported to me, some to Zelenka and some only came to light after we started investigating this. It was only when I started to collate them all that the bigger pattern started to emerge."

"Fair enough," John nodded in understanding. "How long until you can say for sure what the cause is?"

"There are a lot of systems to check ... and the PSU itself is difficult to access," Rodney admitted. "There's a danger of electric shock - power builds up inside the unit to the point that the capacitors can still be charged even if all power sources have been cut off."

"So how long?" Sheppard persisted.

"Always with you it's the meaningless time estimates isn't it?" Rodney complained. "We're not talking about changing the battery on your IPod Colonel ... it's a delicate operation and it'll take as long as it takes."

"Fine," Sheppard let the matter drop for the moment. "As soon as you've got something let me know."

**Authors Note:**

I thought I'd do like a preview chapter now ... and then start posting the rest of this story once I've finished my other story (Fortunate Journey S3). So the next chapter of this will be up in a couple of days.


	2. It’s not taking no for an answer

**Chapter 2: ****It's not taking no for an answer**

Sheppard walked silently down the deserted corridors of Atlantis a few days later, shining the torch on his P90 into each room as he passed it.

"Anything?" tapping his earpiece he checked in with Ronon.

"Does a bunch of boring rooms count as something?" Ronon complained.

"No," Sheppard smiled in amusement. Ronon was less than enthused with the day's mission – to explore one of the sections of Atlantis still a mystery to the current residents of the city. With the continuing system problems and no solution in sight Doctor Weir had decided to keep all gate travel to a necessary minimum.

"Are we nearly done?" Ronon's tone was filled with impatience.

"I've just got one more section to check," Sheppard offered. "Why don't you head back now? I'll catch up with you later."

"I'll wait," Ronon grumbled. "Just make it quick."

"I can do that," Sheppard agreed easily, turning the last corner and shining some light down the corridor.

According to the city schematics there were two research labs down there, purpose unknown. John walked forward, investigating the first room and quickly deciding it offered nothing of value. Moving on to the second room Sheppard knew immediately that he'd found something interesting.

"Ronon," he said intently. "You might want to take me up on that offer and head back ... I'm gonna be here a while."

"What have you found?" Ronon asked, curious in spite of his impatience.

"I have no idea," Sheppard admitted. "There's some kind of device in here, plus a control console."

"Shouldn't you get McKay to look at it?" Sheppard frowned at Ronon's suggestion, mulling it over before responding.

"Probably," he finally admitted. "But I want to give him more than the standard 'it's an unknown device' this time. Besides, he'll only have me down here trying to work out what it is later."

"Fair enough," Ronon agreed. "I'm on my way to your position."

Rather than wait for Ronon to arrive Sheppard made his way fully into the room. The lights came on immediately ... John smiled in amusement at the usual response from the city to the presence of his ATA gene, knowing the strength of that would have annoyed the heck out of Rodney had he been there to witness it.

Lowering his P90 Sheppard stepped up to the device, keeping a wary distance just in case he activated it unintentionally. Nothing happened so John felt safe in moving a little closer. The device looked deceptively simple ... a floor to waist height ring that put Sheppard in mind of the Stargate itself, only much smaller of course. One section of the top was raised like a drawbridge over a gap in the ring that would allow someone to stand in the open middle. The top of the device had the usual incomprehensible Ancient symbols carved into it along with two outlines clearly meant for someone's hands.

Crossing in front of it to look at the control console Sheppard was surprised to feel energy suddenly emanating from the device ... even more so when he realised he was being drawn towards it. Digging his heels into the floor did nothing ... Sheppard had the random thought that this was probably what being caught in a tractor beam would feel like ... if such a thing actually existed of course.

"Ah ... Ronon," Sheppard made contact while still unsuccessfully attempting to pull back from the device. "You might want to hurry it up."

"What's wrong," Ronon's voice reflected the fact that he'd already broken into a run at those words.

"This thing is pulling me in," Sheppard admitted, "and it's not taking no for an answer."

"I'm two minutes away," Ronon promised.

Sheppard's body was pulled the remaining distance into the device until he was standing in the middle, the drawbridge opening slamming down behind him. Now he felt a different pull ... the overwhelming desire to put his hands in the spots provided. He tried to resist but found it impossible, his hands shifting towards the console before he was even aware he was moving. His hands settled almost gently into position, fitting within the outlines as though they'd been designed for him.

As soon as his skin made contact Sheppard felt the surge of power slamming up through his hands, his body, straight into his skull. The force lifted him up from the centre of the device, throwing him hard against the opposite wall and into unconsciousness.

Ronon ran into the room seconds later, skidding to a halt at the sight of Sheppard crumpled on the floor some distance from the device. Skirting uneasily around it Ronon knelt down beside his friend and put a steady hand to his neck, relieved to feel a strong pulse.

"Ronon to Doctor Beckett ... Colonel Sheppard needs medical assistance."

"Where are you lad?" Carson responded immediately. Ronon described their location enough to get the Doctor down there, answering further questions as Beckett tried to assess the severity of John's condition.

Once that was done Ronon felt torn between hovering beside Sheppard and pacing the corridor outside looking for the medical team's arrival. It seemed longer than the seven minutes it took for the team to get there, especially with an unusually still Colonel Sheppard as his only company.

"What happened?" Carson barrelled into the room, two medics and a gurney following close behind. He moved straight to his patient, already beginning the series of checks necessary to work out John's situation.

"I don't know," Ronon grumbled in annoyance. "He contacted me on the radio to tell me that device was pulling him in. When I got here I found him like this."

"Let's get him to the infirmary," Carson motioned for the medics to proceed. Sheppard moaned in pain as the medics shifted him, hands falling limply to his side. "Burns," Carson noticed John's reddened palms for the first time. "It looks like that device delivered some kind of charge ... he's lucky he didn't arrest."

"Is he gonna be okay?" Ronon looked at Beckett in concern.

"Until we find out what that thing did to him I can't be sure," Carson admitted, urging his team to hurry.

Ronon stood off to one side watching as Sheppard was strapped to the gurney and wheeled from the room, Beckett hurrying along beside him.

Instead of following them Ronon tapped his radio. "McKay ... you need to get down here right now."

"What did you do this time?" Rodney's voice echoed with impatience.

"Not me," Ronon retorted, "Sheppard – he touched some kind of Ancient device and now he's unconscious and on his way to the infirmary."

"I'll be right there," Rodney promised.

**Authors Note:**

Just a short chapter to get the story moving again ... not a terribly original concept but who can resist the allure of Sheppard and an Ancient device? Clearly not me!


	3. Bad timing on your part

**Chapter 3: Bad timing on your part**

"Paper," Sheppard snapped to wakefulness, pinning Rodney with the intensity in his eyes. "Pen, paper, now!"

Rodney jumped instinctively from where he'd been keeping watch over his unconscious friend to follow John's command. Hurrying to Carson's desk he grabbed the first items he came across that matched that description. Sheppard almost snatched them from him when he returned, cursing at the loose bandages around his hands that made grasping the pen quite an endeavour.

Rodney watched curiously as John drew large gate symbols on the back of Carson's supplies order form. His curiosity intensified when Sheppard went past seven symbols, drawing an eighth symbol decisively. Sheppard's pen kept moving. He drew a ninth symbol – the familiar symbol for Atlantis - before finally slumping back into the bed.

"You do realise that's a nine symbol gate address you've written down, right?" McKay stated the obvious with the usual 'genius at work' tone in his voice.

"I _know_ Rodney," Sheppard said impatiently. "And before you ask, no I don't know where it leads or where it came from! It was just there in my head and I had to get it down."

"Do you remember what happened in the research lab?" Rodney looked at John expectantly.

"Of course," Sheppard retorted. "Another stupid Ancient device took a fancy to me and then shocked the crap out of me."

"Oh," Rodney reacted in surprise. "That's ... exactly what happened actually. Ronon called me down there and I tried to access the control console but it seems your little interaction burned out some of the circuits. I left Zelenka down there replacing the damaged crystals so we should be able to find out more soon."

"What caused the power surge?" Sheppard asked.

"Bad timing on your part," Rodney admitted apologetically. "We were experiencing some power fluctuations throughout the city just when you activated the device. If I wasn't feeling somewhat ... responsible for that I'd be more annoyed that you turned something on without waiting for me first."

"I _didn't_ turn it on," Sheppard denied irritably, "well not intentionally anyway – I just wanted to get a closer look at it."

"The increased energy flow must have been enough for it to pick up your ATA gene and self-activate," Rodney suggested. "Then the break in power supply caused a surge beyond what the device could handle. Did you get any sense of what it was supposed to do?"

"Not really," Sheppard admitted. "The only thing I got was those gate symbols and even how that happened is a bit hazy."

"They could mean nothing you know," Rodney pointed out. "We've never come across _any_ reference to a nine symbol gate address before ... there's been some speculation about what a ninth symbol might be for but no one's even come up with a working theory so far."

"Then you can be the first McKay," Sheppard replied.

"Ah, you're awake," Doctor Beckett's arrival interrupted the conversation before Rodney could respond. "How are you feeling?"

"I'm fine," Sheppard smiled breezily, already setting the foundation for his request to be discharged.

"Nice try Colonel," Carson shook his head fondly. "You've got first degree burns to both palms – nothing serious and they should heal in a few days. All evidence suggests you were hit with a fairly big charge though – it doesn't appear to have done any damage but you've earned yourself an overnight stay for observation."

"I really do feel okay," Sheppard wasn't willing to give up without a second attempt. "Couldn't I just rest in my room?"

"Sorry Colonel," Carson said unrepentantly. "If everything checks out overnight I'll release you in the morning."

"Fine," John grumbled, folding his arms across his chest and trying not to wince visibly when he jostled his injured hands.

x

"How are you feeling?" Doctor Weir greeted Sheppard as she walked into the infirmary a few hours later. Doctor Beckett had informed her of the incident in the research lab and she'd decided to check for herself that John was okay.

"Pretty good considering I'm stuck in here," Sheppard replied with a small grin. "Did Zelenka restore the power yet?"

"There's been a new break out of minor system problems elsewhere in the city that have drawn both he and Rodney away," Elizabeth shared. "I'm sure they'll get back to that room soon enough."

"Once the Doc clears me I want to go back down there and see if I can find out what that device is meant to do," Sheppard said insistently.

"I'm not sure that's wise," Elizabeth protested. "Carson said you were lucky not to suffer an arrest after being shocked like that."

"Ah but Rodney said that was due to bad timing, not the equipment," Sheppard retorted. "It was only a matter of time before someone got the wrong end of all the problems we've been having."

"That just means we have to be all the more vigilant and not take unnecessary risks," Elisabeth replied, not convinced by his arguments.

"Did Rodney tell you about the gate symbols I drew out?" Sheppard persisted.

"He did," Doctor Weir agreed, "but he also said it was unlikely those nine symbols make up an actual gate address - even with the last one being the designation for Atlantis."

"Aren't you the least bit curious though?" Sheppard queried. "We've seen plenty of amazing things with the Ancients - wormhole travel to other planets - hell other galaxies; alternate realities; alternate dimensions. Who knows where a nine symbol gate address might take us!"

"Exactly!" Doctor Weir exclaimed. "I won't be authorising _anyone_ stepping through the gate without the proper checks to make sure there are no immediate threats _and_ that there's a way to return."

"I _know_ that Elizabeth," Sheppard said somewhat irritably. "I'm just asking for the chance to find out more - see if we can answer some of those questions."

"_If_ Doctor Beckett clears you and _if_ Rodney is confident the power problems won't reoccur then you can go take another look," Weir offered. "But no activating the actual device until you've checked out the information on the control console first."

"Agreed," Sheppard said with an excited smile. "Thanks Elizabeth."

"You're welcome," Elizabeth smiled in return. "Now get some rest ... I'll expect you back on duty once Carson's given you the okay."

Sheppard relaxed back into the bed, watching as Elizabeth walked unhurriedly from the infirmary. He remembered everything that had happened down in the research lab ... only problem was it wasn't much. There was nothing there about getting access to those gate symbols - he'd literally woken up with them stamped across his mind and could only assume the device had done that ... somehow.

He usually left the 'research' stuff to Rodney and his staff, only actively participating when there was a major crisis requiring an immediate solution. This time he felt a connection to that room that urged him to go back there and find out as much as he could.

x

Sheppard fell into a routine once he'd been released from the infirmary, spending a fair portion of his free time down in 'his' research lab. He'd had to rope Rodney in to help with some of the work and within a few days he'd found out as much as he thought he was likely to. It was time to share the information with Doctor Weir.

"That device doesn't work because it's been deliberately sabotaged," Sheppard cut straight to the point. "Rodney called my getting hit with that charge bad timing but in actual fact it was _good_ timing. The surge of power through the device must have overridden the blocks that have been put in place – it's the only explanation for why I got sucked into it when all evidence suggests I shouldn't have."

"So the device has been disabled?" Doctor Weir asked curiously. "Who would have done that?"

"The Ancients," Sheppard said simply.

"Why would they create something and then stop themselves from using it?" Elizabeth frowned in confusion.

"I think because they wanted to cut off the chance of anyone using it to follow them," Sheppard replied. "Look, the control console was missing a lot of information but from what I can tell that device was part of their research into Ascension. It's something to do with them attempting to control where Ascension took them."

"I thought Ascended beings ended up on the higher plane of existence," Elizabeth protested. "Are you saying they don't?"

"I don't know what actually happens when someone Ascends," Sheppard replied. "All I can tell you is that the Ancient's _believed_ they could control the outcome. Whether they did in practice or not is another matter."

"What does all this have to do with those gate symbols?" Elizabeth asked curiously.

"No idea," John admitted freely. "I found nothing about Stargate travel at all. That was a fair wack of power I got hit with – there's every chance the two things are completely unrelated."

"So you're no longer sure it even is a gate address?" Elizabeth queried.

"Doesn't matter either way," Sheppard pointed out. "Rodney's not sure whether there'd be power sufficient to make a stable connection if we just dialled that address – even with a fully charged ZPM at our disposal. How could we justify the risk of depleting the ZPM unless we knew for sure it would work?"

"We couldn't," Elizabeth agreed. "Is it likely we'll find out more if you keep at this?" Elizabeth looked at Sheppard expectantly.

"Not from that lab," Sheppard admitted. "Maybe there's more information hidden away somewhere else ... but for now I'd have to say that this project is pretty much dead in the water."

"Okay," Elizabeth nodded. "Close off the lab and make sure no one else can get access."

Sheppard nodded, striding from the room to get it done. He was disappointed that things hadn't turned out better but he still held some hope that more information would come to light from another source. Sheppard would be the first to admit that the idea of using the ninth chevron intrigued him ... enough that it would drive him to keep looking.


	4. What can you tell me about Ascension?

**Chapter 4: What can you tell me about Ascension?**

Sheppard made his way to the hologram room at the end of his duty shift two days later. In the time since his brush with the ring device he'd tried to search for information about Ascension in the main database using the Earth based technology links ... without success. John was hoping that interacting directly with the database through the hologram would result in a better outcome. Rodney had assured him there was no further evidence of the memory access issues that had been present previously – hopefully that meant if the information was there he'd be able to retrieve it.

Stepping up onto the dais reminded him of the last time he'd done that ... when Colonel Everett had first arrived on Atlantis. Shaking that disturbing memory from his mind John turned his attention to the hologram.

"Hello," she said in her even businesslike tone. "You may enter your query verbally or by entering it manually on the console before you."

"What can you tell me about Ascension?" Sheppard began.

"Ascension is the process by which corporeal beings release themselves from the confines of their physical form to exist as pure energy," the hologram replied.

"Did the original inhabitants of the city research ascension before attempting to get there?" Sheppard asked curiously.

"There were two projects designed to assist the Lanteans to understand Ascension," the hologram revealed. "This system can provide you with information about each of them."

"Can you display a schematic of the city," Sheppard requested. When the map appeared John drilled down until he could point to the location of the research lab where the device was located. "There's a device in this lab – what can you tell me about it?"

"The device you speak of was called the Dequitas," the hologram replied. "It was designed to allow communication between the Ascended and non Ascended of Atlantis."

"There were Ancients who Ascended from here prior to their retreat back to the Milky Way?" Sheppard asked in surprise.

"Those whom you call the Ancients have achieved Ascension many times during their journey," the hologram revealed. "Originally they called themselves the Alterans and lived in a galaxy distance from both this and your own Milky Way. The first Alterans to Ascend did so from that galaxy."

"The Ori?" Sheppard asked for confirmation even though he'd read Daniel Jacksons reports including those on the origins of the Ori religion.

"That is what they eventually became known as," the hologram confirmed, "but only after they had been Ascended for some time when they realised that worship from lower beings provided them with power additional to what they could command as beings of pure energy. In the beginning the Ascended Alterans simply believed their advancement gave them the right to guide and mould the path of lowers - both their fellow Alterans and the other races populating their galaxy. When the remaining Alterans disagreed they were forced to seek a home in a different galaxy. They travelled in ships until they found a great belt of stars with many planets."

"Our galaxy," John nodded in understanding. "That's when they started building their Stargates?"

"The Alterans seeded many of the planets in your galaxy with life, building the Stargate network so that they might easily travel between them," the hologram explained. "And so they existed for thousands of years until the decision was made to leave the Milky Way and begin again in a new galaxy."

"Did any of those Ancients Ascend?" Sheppard asked curiously.

"Many did," the hologram replied. "Part of their reason for seeking another new home was the reduction in their numbers as more and more of them achieved that state. The rest came here to what you call the Pegasus galaxy, renaming themselves Lanteans, repeating the process of seeding life on many planets and building a network of Stargates to connect them."

"And then the Wraith evolved and became a threat," Sheppard said grimly.

"The Lanteans were tired of continually restarting their journey," the hologram revealed. "They sought to achieve Ascension en masse, leaving no one behind. To that aim they created the Dequitas device, seeking guidance from their Ancestors living as Ascended beings."

"Did it work?" Sheppard waited in anticipation of the answer.

"Not as the Lanteans had expected," the hologram admitted. "The Ascended as a group had become convinced that interfering in the affairs of those still existing in corporeal form was to be avoided at all costs. They refused to help the Lanteans in their efforts and disabled the device to cut off further communication."

"Figures," Sheppard said grimly. "So where does the nine symbol gate address come in?"

"I am unable to answer that query," the hologram intoned.

"You don't know?" Sheppard frowned in surprise. "I thought you had access to everything the Lanteans knew! Can you at least tell me what the ninth symbol is for?"

"I am unable to answer that query," the hologram repeated.

"You don't have the information or you choose not to answer?" Sheppard took issue with the carefully worded response the hologram had given.

"That information has been removed from my systems," the hologram clarified.

"By who?" Sheppard demanded.

"By the Lanteans themselves, before they returned to your home galaxy," the hologram replied.

"Why would they do that?" Sheppard asked in confusion.

"They did not record their reasoning," the hologram revealed. "Some of the Lanteans achieved Ascension prior to the withdrawal from this galaxy - despite the failure of the Dequitas device - convincing the rest that their ultimate goal was still achievable for those who wished it. Presumably some did achieve this after settling back into the Milky Way."

"According to the records Daniel Jackson found they did," Sheppard offered. "So there were the Ori Ascended, the first wave of Milky Way Ascended, the Pegasus Ascended and then a second wave of Milky Way Ascended?"

"So it would seem," the hologram agreed.

"Would it make a difference, where they Ascended from?"

"I possess insufficient information to provide an answer to that," the hologram replied.

Sheppard was about to ask another question when the hologram pulsed, flickered, and then disappeared. A second later the lights did the same thing – pulse, flicker and then darkness.

"McKay," Sheppard tapped his ear piece impatiently. "Did you just cut power to the hologram room?"

"No," Rodney replied in a grim tone of voice. "We've got serious power outages all over the city."

"How long until you can restore it?" Sheppard demanded. "I'm kinda stuck in the dark here!"

"Not for hours," Rodney admitted. "I'll send Zelenka up there with a portable power unit to get you out."

"This is getting beyond annoying Rodney," Sheppard pointed out irritably. "When are you gonna fix it?"

"We're working as fast as we can!" Rodney exclaimed in annoyance. "As it happens I _do_ know what the problem is ... and it's not good."

"What's causing it?" Sheppard asked impatiently.

"Meet me up in the conference room when you're out of there and I'll tell you along with the others," Rodney promised.


	5. They wouldn’t even notice it was gone!

**Chapter 5: They wouldn't even notice it was gone!**

Sheppard strode into the conference room twenty minutes later with Doctor Zelenka in tow.

"Okay Rodney," Elizabeth acknowledged John's arrival with a small nod. "We're all here – you were just about to inform us what's been causing all the problems we've been having lately."

"The power supply unit is dying," Rodney dropped that statement into the room with no preparation, presuming the others would know what it meant. Glancing around at the puzzled expressions from everyone but Sheppard he sighed impatiently. "The PSU is the link between the ZedPM and the rest of the systems in terms of power distribution. That's why we've had such a range of issues – power supply problems manifest in a number of different ways."

"Can you fix it?" Elizabeth asked the first obvious question.

"I can't even tell you how it works," Rodney admitted. "I know in principle what it does and I assume it's similar to how things work in Earth based technology but the Ancient version is a black box. I can't investigate it without destroying it."

"Then we get another one," Sheppard suggested confidently.

"From where?" Rodney demanded sarcastically. "We don't exactly have an Ancient Radio Shack on every corner!"

"So it might be difficult to find one," Sheppard excused Rodney's comments. "That doesn't mean it isn't possible."

"There isn't time for that," Rodney said impatiently. "By the time we searched as many planets as it would probably take the damage would be irreversible."

"What about an Earth based version?" Elizabeth persisted. "You say they work in a similar way – is it possible to convert one somehow, even if just to give us more time to come up with a long term solution?"

"Look - I don't think you're getting it," Rodney said heatedly. "We can't fix it and we can't replace it. Without it _nothing_ works, as in goodbye Atlantis!"

"Are you saying the entire city will ... die without this one piece of equipment?" Doctor Weir asked in disbelief.

"That's exactly what I'm saying," Rodney confirmed.

"Well we're not just gonna sit around and wait for that to happen," Sheppard responded insistently. "There must be somewhere we can get a replacement! What about that planet with the version of Atlantis mostly buried under ground? You know – the Tower planet. They'd have one wouldn't they?"

"They would," Rodney perked up immediately at the idea. "And they don't need it because their ZedPM is completely depleted. They wouldn't even notice it was gone!"

"_Rodney_," Doctor Weir looked at him sternly. "We won't be going in the back door or removing _anything_ without the full approval of Tavius and Mara."

"Yes, yes," Rodney said impatiently, mind already engaged in planning for what he'd need to do to remove a PSU safely. "We need to do this sooner rather than later ... the longer we delay the more chance there is that permanent damage will be done."

"You have a go," Elizabeth told team Sheppard. "But remember John – negotiate – offer them what they need ... within reason."

"Will do," Sheppard agreed, already moving towards the door, his team members following close behind.

x

"Didn't think I'd be coming back here any time soon," Sheppard said, directing the cloaked jumper to a clearing a short distance from the Tower and easing her down gently.

"I thought you'd be eager to revisit," Rodney smirked slyly. "You might have to use your charms to help with negotiations. Shouldn't be hard – didn't you and Mara have a thing?"

"There was no 'thing'," Sheppard growled. "No fling either! She did what she thought was necessary to prevent her own execution."

"Still, she must have liked you to offer you the throne even after the threat of impending death had been lifted," Rodney persisted.

"Just drop it McKay," Sheppard pinned Rodney with a dark glare that had him biting back any further quips he might have had planned.

"How are you intending to approach this?" Teyla asked curiously.

"They know us," Sheppard reminded the others. "I was thinking we just go up to the Tower door and knock."

"Works for me," Ronon agreed, checking his blaster to make sure it was fully charged.

"Remember what Elizabeth said," Sheppard looked at each of his team, pausing a few moments longer with Ronon to make sure he had the message. "This is a _peaceful_ negotiation – so act friendly."

"I can do friendly," Ronon grinned fiercely.

"Ah big guy - you might want to stay at the back," Sheppard advised, amused when the grin dropped abruptly from Ronon's face. "Okay, let's do this."

They walked in relative silence through the trees towards the Tower entrance. On the surface it seemed that nothing had changed – they weren't passing close to the village though, where it was likely most of the improvements would have taken place.

Rodney had his Ancient scanner out and was watching it closely as they approached. "Oh no," he said weakly.

"What?" Sheppard demanded.

"I'm picking up power readings dead ahead," Rodney admitted.

"From the Tower?" Sheppard asked in disbelief. "I thought their ZPM was depleted."

"It was!" Rodney exclaimed. "They must have found another one."

"What, so we search fifty planets in a few months and find nothing but in the same time these people stumble across something they don't even understand?" Sheppard grumbled in amazement.

"Could it be another type of power source?" Teyla broke through Sheppard's irritation to ask.

"Maybe," Rodney conceded. "It won't matter though – the PSU would be needed regardless of the type of energy source they're using. And the fact that they now have power means it's much less likely they'll just hand us theirs."

"Let's not jump to conclusions," Sheppard advised. "They're used to being without power ... maybe there's something they want more. We won't know until we ask."

"You said it yourself," Rodney muttered under his breath. "We never had any success finding a ZedPM of our own – what makes you think we'd have any better luck with a PSU?"

"That's the attitude Rodney," Sheppard quipped. Striding forward confidently he led the others into the clearing and across to the Tower 'door'.

"State your business," the door swished open to reveal a single guard.

"I'm Lieutenant Colonel John Sheppard ... this is Teyla Emmagen, Ronon Dex and Doctor Rodney McKay. We'd like to see Tavius or Mara."

"Only members of the Royal Court may enter here," the guard announced.

"It's okay," Sheppard insisted, sharing a puzzled look with his team. "We've been here before. Why don't you go check with ... whoever you need to check with? We'll wait."

The guard glared at them in annoyance before pivoting and marching back the way he'd come, door swishing closed behind him.

"That was odd," Sheppard muttered softly.

"Weren't they supposed to do away with all that Royal Court stuff?" Ronon's look was one of suspicion that things were not as they should have been.

"They were," Sheppard agreed.

"Well maybe the return of power to the Control Chair revived their belief in the class system," Rodney suggested snidely. "The ATA gene _is_ the ultimate in the 'haves' and 'have-nots' after all."

"We do not know what has occurred here since our last visit," Teyla cautioned. "Perhaps it was necessary to reinstate some aspects of their previous beliefs."

"Teyla's right," Sheppard agreed. "Let's reserve judgement until we can see for ourselves."

x

Ten minutes later they were sprinting back to the Puddle Jumper with a group of Tower guards in hot pursuit.

"Can we pass judgement now?" Rodney yelled, panting harshly as he struggled to keep up.

"Save your breath and run faster McKay," Sheppard ordered, glancing over his shoulder and firing off a few shots.

Finally they made it back to the clearing – Sheppard deactivated the cloak, motioning for everyone to take their positions inside the Jumper. Throwing himself into the pilots' seat he quickly brought the systems on line, including the HUD.

"They're firing drones," Rodney called out urgently, staring down at his console in agitation. "You need to get us off the ground."

"I _know_ McKay," Sheppard growled, already manoeuvring the controls. The Jumper shot straight up to gain some altitude before setting a path straight for the gate.

"_We have incoming_," Rodney yelled. "Six drones right behind us."

"Dial the gate," Sheppard ordered.

"How are you gonna avoid getting hit?" Ronon asked. "They know exactly where we're going – the cloak won't help with that."

"Haven't worked that out yet," Sheppard admitted, making the Jumper dip, swerve and roll to avoid the first of the drones.

Aiming for the thickest part of the forest John spotted a long strip of clear ground ahead. Taking the Jumper down into it he skimmed close to the ground, getting them almost to the edge of the clearing before pulling up, making the trees ripple in the Jumper's wake. The drones, unable to correct in time, slammed into the forest, producing an impressive ball of fire.

"Nice," Ronon complemented, slapping Sheppard on the back.

"Don't get excited just yet," Sheppard retorted. "More drones are on their way."

Sheppard took the Jumper past the Stargate, now with open wormhole, heading straight towards the Tower. Four drones pursued them relentlessly, matching every move Sheppard made. John flew the Jumper up the side of the Tower in a spiralling loop and then headed straight back down towards the ground.

"Ah ... you are gonna pull up at some point, right?" Rodney asked nervously, watching the ground rushing up towards them through the front view screen.

Without responding Sheppard pushed the Jumper to the limit, so much so that he had to strain at the end to level it out in time. As before the drones weren't responsive enough to avoid the impact with the ground.

"Hopefully that shook them up a bit," Sheppard grinned smugly, sending the Jumper straight for the Gate while smoke billowed from the base of the Tower.

"That close to the city?" Rodney commented incredulously. "You've probably sparked a series of earthquakes at the very least."

"They'll be too busy to try and detain us then, won't they," Sheppard said without remorse. "Punch in the IDC McKay," he said firmly. "This place is a bust."


	6. Okay, we need other options

**Chapter 6: Okay, we need other options**

"I take it you didn't get the PSU?" Weir raised an eyebrow at John expectantly when she met with Team Sheppard in the Conference Room to debrief.

"No," John admitted. "And I'd cross them off the friendly planet list too."

"What happened?" Elizabeth's tone was puzzled exasperation. "The last team we had there left on good terms."

"They found a ZedPM," Rodney revealed. "They didn't say where. In any case, the return of power to the Control Chair revived their complex political manoeuvring as well as their desire to take advantage of the villagers through intimidation."

"Tavius took control of the Royal Court and reinstituted his father's leadership methods," Teyla said with regret. "All the work done to improve the lives of the villagers has been undone."

"We don't know what happened to Mara," Sheppard added grimly, "but it wouldn't take a genius to come up with an accurate guess."

"I assume they were less than eager to offer us their PSU," Doctor Weir came to the right conclusion about the state of affairs.

"You could say that," Sheppard agreed. "In fact the only thing they _were_ eager about was chasing us to the door ... them and their _several_ guns."

"Tavius knows that Colonel Sheppard possesses the Ancient gene in a strength not matched by his family in many years," Teyla explained. "He would not risk the presence of anyone who could challenge his position as ruler."

"I never liked that guy," Sheppard muttered.

"What now?" Weir looked to Rodney first. "Are there any other planets that might offer us the chance at another PSU?"

"I don't know," Rodney complained. "I can't believe we were this close to exactly what we needed!"

"Get over it McKay," Ronon advised.

"Easy for you to say," Rodney retorted. "No one's gonna blame you for killing a whole city!"

"No one is blaming anyone Rodney," Elizabeth protested. "Instead of worrying about your position perhaps you could concentrate on finding a solution."

"We'll search the database," Sheppard offered. "See what else we can come up with."

"Okay, do that," Weir agreed, getting up as her usual signal that the meeting was finished. "Report back to me first thing tomorrow."

"We are so screwed," Rodney mumbled under his breath, slumping down in his seat.

"Come on McKay," Sheppard urged. "That database isn't gonna search itself."

x

The next morning team Sheppard met with Doctor Weir to share their progress ... well lack of progress as it turned out.

"We did a quick review of all the planets we've had teams gate to," Rodney reported dejectedly. "The Tower planet was our best chance - there's nothing else even worth going to check out."

"What about planets we haven't visited yet?" Weir asked. "Teyla, Ronon – do either of you know of any that might have what we need?"

"Most of the Ancient outposts are nothing more than ruins," Teyla replied hesitantly. "I know of none with power requirements similar to those Doctor McKay described."

"Same here," Ronon said simply. "Lots of ruins, but nothing on the scale of the Tower."

"Okay, we need other options," Weir announced crisply. "Rodney?"

"I've got nothing," Rodney admitted weakly. "Zelenka's still searching the database ... but it's not looking good. I also have a team exploring a way to jury rig an Earth based PSU unit ... also looking less than favourable at this point."

"I have an idea ... of sorts," Sheppard said, grimacing as everyone looked at him expectantly. "It's a long shot and it's out there, even by my standards."

"I don't think we can afford to discount any ideas, no matter how crazy," Elizabeth replied. "So fire away."

"Okay," Sheppard agreed, thinking it through before beginning his explanation. "We have the Dequitas device which is supposed to allow communication between Ascended and non Ascended beings. I managed to get something working when the power overloaded so ... we get McKay to overload it again and I attempt to ask the Ascended Ancients for help."

"When you said 'out there', you weren't exaggerating were you?" Rodney was the first to react. "That sounds like an insane plan!"

"Not to mention _dangerous_," Elizabeth added. "Carson said last time that you were lucky to get off with only slight injuries."

"Well obviously there'll have to be some kind of control to the overload," Sheppard pointed out. "We only need enough to get through the blocks the Ancients put in place, which hopefully will be much less than I got jolted with last time. At that point the device should work as designed."

"Do we know that it actually does do what you think it will?" Ronan asked.

"According to the hologram program it does," Sheppard said simply. "The Ancients problem wasn't that they couldn't communicate with the Ascendeds, just that they wouldn't help them."

"And what makes you think they'll help us?" Elizabeth asked incredulously. "The Lanteans were much more closely related to them than we are."

"Because if they don't the city some of them created and nurtured will fall," Sheppard replied. "I know – maybe they won't care about that – but maybe they will. I think it's worth the risk to at least try and find out."

Doctor Weir thought for a few moments before reluctantly nodding her agreement. "You're right," she said softly. "We need to make sure we've exhausted every chance before we call it quits on Atlantis." Turning to Rodney she gave the order. "Set up a controlled overload of the device ... let me know when you're ready to proceed."

"This is a crazy plan," Rodney looked at Sheppard grimly once everyone else had left. "You know that right? The fact that we're even doing this is just another indicator of how completely screwed we actually are."

"Look McKay," Sheppard met Rodney's troubled gaze with as much confidence as he could muster. "We owe it to the city, to the people who live in this galaxy, hell maybe even to the Ancient's themselves, to do whatever we can to preserve Atlantis. Do you really want us to be the ones responsible for destroying something that's stood for thousands of years?"

"Of course not," Rodney replied heatedly. "I want to save this city as much as you do, probably more since my future job prospects will be zilch if I have to write 'reason for leaving last job – destroyed an entire city' on my resume. I'm just saying our future is looking pretty grim if we have to rely on the glowy energy beings to get us over the line."

"I'm not exactly comfortable with that either," Sheppard admitted. "But unless you have a better idea this is all we've got."

"Fine ... I'm on it," Rodney said in resignation, motioning for Sheppard to follow him as he led the way to his lab to pick up the necessary gear.

**Authors Note:**

Apologies for completely altering the future for the people on the Tower planet ... I do think Tavius was too slimy not to have taken an opportunity to revert if he got one though ... and I couldn't make it too easy for Rodney and Shep!


	7. Shut it down McKay!

**Chapter 7: Shut it down McKay!**

"We're ready to proceed down here Elizabeth," Sheppard reported two hours later.

"Has Rodney isolated the room from the rest of the power supply," Elizabeth queried.

"He says as much as he can yes," Sheppard admitted. "He's worried that a power surge could still get through which is why we have Doctor Beckett down here as well ... just in case."

"Okay Colonel," Doctor Weir said in agreement. "Proceed with your attempt ... and good luck."

"Thanks Elizabeth," Sheppard acknowledged, turning to look expectantly at Rodney. "Are you ready to do this?"

"Most of the effort's coming from you," Rodney countered. "We're the ones who should be asking if you're ready."

Sheppard glanced from Rodney to Carson and then on to Ronon who'd insisted on being present during the attempt. Nodding confidently he said briskly "Okay then, let's do this."

Rodney powered up the portable generator he'd hooking into the command console, waiting as the energy built up enough to hopefully recreate the events of last time. "I'm transferring power to the console ...now," he reported, hitting a button on his laptop and then motioning for Sheppard to move in.

Stepping closer to the Dequitas John felt again the 'tractor beam' like pull dragging him into the centre of the device. Not resisting this time he let the Ancient machine draw him in, placing his hands firmly down into the places provided. The secondary power supply flowed through the device connecting him to the system. Sheppard closed his eyes as the link drew him in mentally, concentrating on seeking communication with the Ascended beings he _hoped_ were on the other side. Suddenly the power levels spiked ... Sheppard winced as what had been an almost pleasant sensation of energy flowing turned into a painful clawing surge throughout his whole body.

"_McKay_," he groaned out, trying to remove his hands from the device and finding that he couldn't.

"There's a power build up in the main systems," Rodney's fingers flew over his laptop as he attempted to work out what had gone wrong. "This is _exactly_ what I said would happen – there's too much power – the tractor effect of the device has been amplified enough to trap you in place."

"_THEN CUT THE POWER!_," Sheppard yelled, pain running through his voice and etched into his face.

"What do you think I'm doing over here?" Rodney complained irritably. "If I turn off the secondary power supply it should release you."

Sheppard's whole body was twitching now as the cumulative effect of that much power flowing through him took its toll. Fading out a little he put all his focus into not translating the screaming he was doing in his head into something audible.

"_Shut it down McKay_!" Ronon growled, hovering around Sheppard as he writhed and groaned.

"I'm trying!" Rodney yelled back. "The surge in the main systems is interfering with my equipment – I can't turn either power source off."

Sheppard's verbal distress shifted from groans to something as close to screaming as John would ever get. Tired of waiting for Rodney to fix it, Ronon ripped out the ever present blaster, taking aim and firing directly at the supplementary power unit. The effect was immediate – the shot obliterating Rodney's equipment and sending sparks shooting through the Ancient console. Sheppard, released from the hold of the Dequitas, slumped limply to rest against the top of the inert device.

Carson rushed over, checking for a pulse. "He's all right," he said in relief, raising the drawbridge and easing John down to lie on the floor.

"_Are you nuts_?!" Rodney rounded on Ronon angrily. "That could have killed him!"

"But it didn't," Ronon stated the obvious. "And you're welcome."

"Colonel?" Carson shook John gently, tuning out the sounds of Rodney continuing to grumble about the Satedan's caveman tactics.

"Mmm," Sheppard's eyelids fluttered before he opened his eyes with a groan. "Ouch," he complained. "That didn't go to plan did it?"

"Not exactly," Carson agreed, helping Sheppard into a sitting position. "How do you feel?"

"Like I just stuck my finger in an electric socket," Sheppard joked, relenting when Carson looked at him without amusement. "It's okay Carson – I'm fine – I think the device itself protected me from the worst of the surge."

"I'd still like to get you down to the infirmary," Beckett replied insistently. "Just to make sure that machine didn't do anything to you internally."

"Later," Sheppard promised, pushing himself up gingerly from the floor. He swayed for a moment before steadying himself and moving over to the console. Rodney was standing in front of it, checking his laptop with a troubled expression. "Is it still working?"

"We'll be lucky if we can retrieve what little information we did get," Rodney retorted. "This thing is completely fried ... and before you ask, by fried I mean _dead_ as in there is no way we are ever gonna fix it."

"Oh," Sheppard slumped somewhat dejectedly. "I guess that means we'll just have to go with what I got then."

"You got something?" Rodney jumped on that eagerly.

"I did," Sheppard said with a triumphant smile. "Let's round up the gang so I only have to explain this once."

x

"I didn't talk to any Ascended Ancients," Sheppard revealed that bad news to the others up front, "so there's no magic fix guaranteed to get us a new PSU."

"Then what _did_ you get?" Rodney asked impatiently.

"I saw ... something," Sheppard said somewhat cryptically. "It was just a flash ... of a place not much different in appearance to any planet we might Gate to in Pegasus. Everything _was_ brighter – the colours, the ambient light, the sky – but that could have just been because I had all that energy flowing through me."

"Are you saying you connected to the higher plane where the Ascended Ancients exist?" Doctor Weir made the connection immediately, looking at John with an incredulous look.

"It makes sense," Sheppard defended his statement. "We just assumed it would be something completely unrecognisable ... the only person we know of to return from the higher plane was Daniel Jackson and he didn't remember anything."

"How does that help us?" Rodney asked impatiently. "Correct me if I'm wrong but don't you have to die – I'm sorry, _Ascend_ – to get there?"

"Who says it takes one to get to the other?" Sheppard challenged. "That's just another assumption we've all made based on evidence that should suggest otherwise ... we've seen an Ascended being right here on Atlantis so we know they can exist in our own plane. Who's to say we can' t exist in theirs?"

"Just because they can come back here doesn't mean they don't also exist on the higher plane at the same time," Rodney challenged back. "Maybe they don't really come here at all."

"Let's not complicate this too much," Sheppard cautioned. "Look, from what I saw while I was connected to that device the higher plane is just a place like any other. I think the Ancients Ascended and _then_ moved on to that place."

"So you're saying that Ascension and the higher plane are unrelated?" Weir frowned in confusion.

"All I'm saying is that the higher plane isn't a consequence of Ascending," Sheppard replied with certainty. "It's just a place to live."

"I see where you're going with this," Rodney sat forward abruptly, clicking his fingers and sounding excited for the first time.

"The nine symbol gate address," Sheppard grinned at Rodney, feeling a fair bit of excitement himself.

"You think the address you wrote down the first time you touched that device leads to the higher plane of existence?" Doctor Weir looked from John to Rodney in disbelief.

"Where else?" Sheppard put the question back on her.

"Just because I can't think of another destination doesn't make your conclusions any more valid," Elizabeth pointed out logically.

"True," Sheppard allowed. "Combined with what the hologram told me and what I just saw when I was connected through the Dequitas I don't see any other viable explanation."

"How do we know there are Stargates on the other side?" Ronon asked the logical next question.

"Because I found a second gate symbol linked with the one for Atlantis when I was researching the Dequitas device with the hologram program," Sheppard revealed. "I didn't understand what it meant at the time but now I think it's the designation for the lower plane of existence which means only one thing ... the Ancients were expecting to dial back here using something ... the only conclusion is that there's at least one Stargate on the other side of that address."

"But who would have built them ... it?" Doctor Weir quizzed.

"I don't know Elizabeth," Sheppard admitted. "I can only assume it wasn't the Ascendeds because they wouldn't need a Stargate to travel wherever they wanted to go."

"Surely the power requirements for such a connection would be beyond the scope of a zero point module," Teyla postulated.

"This is more McKay's area than mine," Sheppard answered while Rodney was still thinking about it, "but I'm thinking the power requirements might actually be less than for a galaxy to galaxy connection." Turning to Rodney he asked "Isn't it all about distance?" When Rodney nodded John continued. "Theoretically energy should be a moot point for a lower to higher plane connection because the concept of distance doesn't really make any sense."

"He's ... ah he actually might be right," Rodney looked at John in surprise.

"Don't worry Rodney," Sheppard smiled in amusement at his friend's dismay, "Your position as resident genius isn't under threat."

"So the nine symbol gate address leads to the higher plane of existence," Doctor Weir summarised, "the place the Ancients Ascended to and you want to go there. Forgive me but that sounds more than a little risky."

"I can't prove that the trip will be completely safe," Sheppard admitted freely, "but aren't we at the stage where we have to risk it?"

"I don't know, are we?" Elizabeth turned to Rodney expectantly. "Can we still power the Stargate? What are the real consequences if this PSU gives out and could we find another PSU down the track and restore the system then?"

"Yes, yes, bad and no," Rodney replied succinctly. When Elizabeth looked at him pointedly he relented. "Okay – the _long_ answer. _Yes_ we can still use the Stargate for Pegasus gate travel because that's powered the same way as all the other Stargates – it's only for an Earth connection that the ZedPM is employed," Rodney said all in one breath. "And _yes_ we are at the stage of needing to take the big risks to get another PSU because _no_ we can't replace a dead PSU with a new one sometime down the track. If the PSU dies suddenly the affect on any of the systems would be unpredictable – we could fry the Ancient database all too easily which would be _bad_. We could try a controlled shutdown before that happens but it's still the same problem because I wouldn't want to risk that without backing up the database first. There aren't enough hard drives on Atlantis to hold even a small percentage of it, no matter how much I compress it."

"So can we go?" Sheppard looked at Elizabeth hopefully, watching carefully as she thought about all the angles.

"Yes," she said finally. "You can try to establish a connection ... if the MALP readings look favourable I'll authorise a mission."

"Nice," Sheppard grinned excitedly. "Come on Rodney – let's go get that MALP ready."

Elizabeth watched the two of them run off like school boys late for recess, followed closely by a more sedate Ronon and Teyla. Shaking her head fondly she couldn't help but feel that somehow this would turn out to be a really bad idea.


	8. Dial it up

**Chapter 8: Dial it up**

Two hours later a MALP sat ready an appropriate distance in front of the Stargate. Sheppard and McKay were in the Control Room with the rest of their team and Doctor Weir, preparing to dial the nine symbol gate address. All of team Sheppard were fully geared up ready to head out as soon as the mission was given the final go ahead.

"Which one of those coordinates is the higher plane reference," Doctor Weir asked curiously.

"With a normal gate address the first six symbols designate the point in space – the location of the other Stargate - and the seventh symbol is the dialling planet designation," Rodney gave an impromptu lecture on Stargate addresses. "For between galaxy travel the first symbol becomes the distance or galaxy designation – like an area code – and the following seven are just like any gate address. For this address the first symbol designates the plane of existence, the second is the distance symbol – still Pegasus because presumably the galaxy reference is irrelevant, the third to eighth symbols are some kind of location like a planet designation, and the last is the home planet as usual."

"Which leaves us with just one small problem," Sheppard made eye contact with Elizabeth, understanding exactly what had prompted her to ask the question. "We've got eight symbols covered but we'll need to find something on the other side to give us the ninth symbol - otherwise we won't be able to dial home."

"Not unlike the situation Doctor Jackson found himself in the first time he stepped through the Stargate back on Earth," Rodney agreed, clearly not thinking it was anything to be concerned about.

"If the Ascendeds won't help, you could end up stuck there," Elizabeth warned.

"Nah," Sheppard dismissed that possibility. "If we can't find it ourselves I'll set Rodney onto the Ascendeds – they'll dial the Gate for us themselves just to get rid of him."

"Ha ha," Rodney said snidely. "You'd be lost without me Colonel ... you just can't admit it."

"Whatever," Sheppard shared an amused look with Elizabeth before turning serious again. "Are we gonna try this?"

"Dial it up," Weir said those familiar words confidently. Rodney looked at Sheppard who nodded imperceptibly, giving McKay the honour of initiating the first nine symbol wormhole connection. Rodney pressed each symbol with deliberate intent until the whole address had been entered.

Flashing lights circled the Stargate, hitting each symbol and locking in the corresponding chevron ... one, two, three, the lights continued to circle ... seven, eight. Everyone held their breath as the lights circled the Gate for the ninth time.

"Chevron nine ... is locked," Rodney's voice was equal parts awe and surprise as the vortex kawhooshed from the Gate before settling back into a stable connection. "Sending MALP through now," Rodney reported, watching the mechanical device as it disappeared slowly through the event horizon. "Tracking ..."

Everyone kept their eyes on the display screen as the MALP travelled ... somewhere. A few seconds later the signal blipped sharply, wavered and then vanished.

"McKay?" Sheppard looked at Rodney questioningly.

"We're still picking up telemetry," Rodney said in confusion.

"Perhaps your display cannot represent the MALPs journey within this higher plane," Teyla suggested.

"Well whatever the problem, the MALP is now stationary," Rodney turned away from the screen to look at Elizabeth. "I'm picking up a viable atmosphere but we're not getting visual."

Doctor Weir stood gazing at the vacant view screen thoughtfully while silence reigned in the Control Room.

"Elizabeth?" Sheppard queried softly. "It's not gonna get any better than this."

"I know," Weir replied simply. "I was just thinking about the significance of what we're ... what _you're_ about to do."

"Oh," Sheppard reacted in surprise. "Are you about done with that?"

"You have a go," Elizabeth smiled when John almost bounced up and down at her confirmation that the mission was to go ahead.

"Okay," Sheppard motioned for the rest of his team to form up. "I'll report in when we get there," he promised.

"If we can," Rodney added. "The fact that we didn't get visual may mean audio won't work either."

"She knows that McKay," Sheppard put a hand on Rodney's shoulder and almost pushed him in the right direction.

Doctor Weir followed them down the stairs and across the Gateroom. "Good luck," she said simply.

Ronon and Teyla stepped through the event horizon first, followed by Rodney with Sheppard bringing up the rear. He paused to glance back, throwing a half wave to Elizabeth before stepping through confidently.

When asked about it later Sheppard wouldn't be able to describe just _how_ the journey through the wormhole had been different ... just that he knew in some fundamental way it _was_. He almost stumbled when the last step he'd taken on Atlantis was followed by the first on the other side of the wormhole, feeling disorientated and a bit shaky on his feet.

The Stargate remained connected, reminding him that he was supposed to report their safe arrival if at all possible.

"Atlantis this is Sheppard, do you read?" He waited a few moments before trying again. "Elizabeth, are you getting any of this?" Still nothing. "I don't know if you can hear this or if you're trying to respond ... it's all silent on this side. Assuming you _are_ getting this, we have exited the Stargate safely and are about to begin searching for any signs of life. Keep the porch light on but don't wait up. Sheppard out."

When the Stargate disengaged only seconds later John chose to assume Atlantis had gotten his message even though they'd been unable to respond. Shaking his head to clear the fog still clouding his mind Sheppard turned to check on the condition of his team mates.

Rodney was sitting slumped down on the edge of the ramp leading away from the Gate, elbows resting on his knees and hands cupping his forehead. Teyla was standing a few steps in front of John, steady but with an expression that said she was troubled by something. Ronon was also close by, checking his weapons as if believing that he could defend against whatever it was that had knocked them all for six.

"Are you guys okay?" Sheppard took a few cautious steps forward, relieved to feel himself returning to normal. Teyla and Ronon nodded without complaint but Rodney took the opportunity to express his dissatisfaction as usual.

"_No_," he muttered sickly. "My stomach was less than happy with the level of turbulence we suffered during that trip."

"Turbulence?" Sheppard asked in surprise.

"Yes, _turbulence_. Not everything is about airplanes and jet fighters Colonel 'Flyboy'," Rodney said sarcastically. "Turbulence is also caused by rapid variations of pressure and velocity in space and time – like when matter travels in a stellar atmosphere ... or I don't know – in a _wormhole_."

"No need to get grumpy McKay," Sheppard chided his friend's bad mood.

Turning he took a good look around ... strangely the first thing he noticed was the ground. Rather than dirt or grass or any combination of the two he saw what could only be described as paving stones. They weren't all identical though – Sheppard could see many different geometric shapes placed to form intricate patterns enhanced by the designs carved into each.

Looking up from that faintly troubling sight Sheppard noted the Stargates location in the centre of a small circular clearing. All around were trees of a type he'd never seen before – he knew that because they were ridiculously tall and impossibly straight with thick foliage a shade of green more vibrant than any he'd seen elsewhere. Sheppard slowly walked the perimeter of the clearing until he'd done one complete lap – he couldn't be completely sure without taking actual measurements but he wouldn't have been surprised if the clearing was in fact a perfect circle.

As far as he could determine the trees fanned out in every direction, close enough that he couldn't tell how far they'd have to travel to get through them. And that was another thing confusing his senses – surely with trees that tall and dense in a clearing that wasn't especially large it would be darker than it was? Sheppard glanced up curiously, wincing as the bright light of an intense purplish blue sky stabbed into his eyes. Clearly the source of that brightness was strong enough it could illuminate the Stargates location, despite the dense forest surrounding it.

Looking back at his companions he noted that Teyla and Ronon appeared ready to proceed. Rodney was still sitting on the ramp, still more focussed on himself than his surroundings.

"Are you up for checking this place out or should we come back for you later?" Sheppard stopped in front of Rodney to ask.

"Har de har," Rodney muttered, slowly dragging himself upright. He stood for a moment as if waiting to see what his stomach would do before giving a satisfied nod. "I'm good," he announced, finally taking the opportunity to look around for the first time. Ripping his camera from one of the numerous pockets on his tac vest he started snapping pictures, concentrating mostly on the Stargate symbols on the DHD and the patterned pavers covering the ground.

"This is unlike any place we have travelled to before," Teyla noted with interest.

"But it _is_ similar to what I saw when I was connected to the Dequitas," Sheppard confirmed.

"You were right," Rodney said, finishing up with the photos and pulling out his data pad instead. "Everything _is_ brighter ... enough that it'll take our eyes a while to fully adjust. We're lucky it's relatively dim in here."

"Are you picking up anything?" Sheppard glanced pointedly at the data pad Rodney was panning around the clearing.

"Right," Rodney looked down at the readings. "There's nothing of note in the immediate vicinity ... we'll have to take a stab at a likely heading."

"How about we follow the path?" Ronon had walked around the clearing too and now stood to the side of the gate. Sheppard frowned momentarily, wondering as he walked towards Ronon how he'd missed such an obvious feature. Shrugging he turned back to Rodney.

"Or we could follow the path," Sheppard quipped, slapping Ronon on the shoulder before taking the lead.


	9. There’s some kind of settlement

**Chapter 9: There's some kind of settlement in that direction**

They walked for an hour with no sight of anything other than trees in the distance, each lost in their own thoughts. The forest stretched out around them, line upon impossibly straight line of identical trunks like soldiers arranged on a parade ground. Sheppard had considered the many trips he'd made through the Stargate and was convinced this was possibly the most disturbing place he'd ever been.

"Anything yet McKay?" he checked impatiently. "All this precision is starting to freak me out."

"I agree Colonel," Teyla's tone was faintly troubled. "I do not believe that nature should be this ... symmetric."

"I'm getting readings on some kind of opening up ahead," Rodney said at last, squinting down at his data pad.

"Anyone around?" Ronon asked in interest, appearing less troubled than the rest of them in the unnatural environment.

"None that I can tell," Rodney admitted. "Not that we can take anything from that ... it's quite possible this thing isn't even working like it would back home."

"Let's not borrow trouble McKay," Sheppard discounted his concerns. "For now we'll assume the readings you're getting are accurate ... until something happens to suggest otherwise."

"I hope it _is_ working," Rodney glanced over his shoulder nervously. "I'd really like to get out of this forest."

'You and me both," Sheppard for once let the opportunity to tease Rodney pass without comment.

Conversation dwindled back to zero as the team made its way to the edge of the forest. It seemed that one minute they were surrounded by trees and the next they were in an open field, the forest behind them stopping abruptly in a straight line that stretched out to either side of them for as far as their eyes could see. The ambient brightness stabbed into their eyes with renewed force now they were past the dimming nature of the forest. Sheppard took a moment to put his sunglasses on before proceeding.

"Finally," Sheppard exhaled in relief, keeping his P90 in an 'alert' position as he motioned for Teyla and Ronon to fan out on each side of him. Rodney moved automatically into position just behind John, data pad held out before him like a weapon ... which in Rodney's hands it _was_.

"There's some kind of settlement in that direction," Rodney gestured off to their right. "I've got multiple structures as well as life sign readings – we're too far away for me to tell how many."

"Let's check it out," Sheppard announced, taking point with Rodney following closely and the others bringing up the rear a few paces behind. "At least we've got grass," he commented to Rodney as they walked at a steady pace.

"Yeah," Rodney agreed, "if you can call it that. When's the last time you saw grass that shade of fluorescent green? Plus I think whoever tends this has been trimming each blade individually because they're all the same length ... and I mean down to the last millimetre."

"I guess the level of order here with the implied control aspect would appeal to the Ascended Ancients," Sheppard proposed. "I always got the sense that one of their reasons for not interfering with 'lowers' was that the outcome was too unpredictable."

"Mmm," Rodney tone said he was less than convinced by that argument. "Okay, the settlement should be just over that rise."

"Stay here," Sheppard motioned for everyone to stop. "I want to get a look before we just march down there."

"You think a bunch of Ascended beings have laid a trap for any poor unsuspecting humans who find their way here?" Rodney asked incredulously.

"No," Sheppard denied pointedly. "I think that Ascended beings aren't the only ones living here and there's just as much reason to assume they're hostile as there is to believe they'd welcome our intrusion."

"Oh," Rodney was brought up short. "Ah ... I'll just wait here until you work out which it is."

Sheppard shook his head in amusement, motioning for Teyla to accompany him while Ronon stayed back with Rodney. Ducking low to the ground they ran as close to the rise as they could get without detection before dropping to crawl low to the ground for the remaining few metres.

Sheppard got out his binoculars and trained his gaze down to the valley below. He'd been expecting something in the same precise vein as everything else they'd seen and the settlement didn't disappoint. Whoever had built or designed this place had really liked circles as a design feature. Instead of many separate buildings the settlement was made up of ring buildings, each slightly bigger than the other forming one large circle – like an archery target only with spaces between each circle. In the centre of the arrangement was a splash of green, probably a garden of some sort.

Sheppard watched for a few moments before he saw signs of life ... people walking between the ring buildings as they went about their business. There was no sign of anything resembling weaponry or anything else to raise the alarm bells.

"Ronon," Sheppard activated his radio, hoping it'd work like usual.

"Yeah," Ronon replied immediately.

"It looks good," Sheppard reported. "Bring McKay up here and we'll head down to the settlement."

"On our way," Ronon's tone suggested he was looking forward to some action after the somewhat 'boring' beginning to the mission.

Team Sheppard formed up and walked in a relaxed manner towards the settlement. As they approached the outermost building it became clear that the settlement was larger than it at first appeared, more like a city. There were subtle signs of technology and a flavour that put them all in mind of Atlantis. An arched opening provided access to the city – glancing inside they say a long corridor heading towards the centre of the arrangement of buildings.

No one arrived to stop them so Sheppard led the way forward, through the doorway and into the city.

They emerged from the first ring building into the open to come face to face with the first of the inhabitants. They were dressed in an unexpectedly familiar manner with a general appearance that also seemed more recognisable than John would have expected.

"Is anyone else confused about this?" Rodney asked the question in as quiet a voice as he could manage.

"How so?" Sheppard returned, stopping to wait for someone to approach them.

"_Hello_ – these people _look_ like Ancients!" Rodney exclaimed in a harsh whisper.

"Doctor McKay is correct," Teyla agreed softly. "Their attire and physical appearance is very similar to the records archived in the Atlantis database."

"That's probably because they _are_ Ancients,' Sheppard said casually. "We only _assumed_ they either Ascended or died ... it makes sense that some of them used the nine symbol gate address and came to live here instead."

"What ... they moved here and then decided to get really fanatical about gardening and forestry?" Rodney asked in disbelief.

"I'm pretty sure the nature stuff is a function of this being a higher plane of existence," Sheppard gave his opinion. "After all, there'd be no point in the Ascended Ancients coming here if it wasn't an improvement over where they came from."

"You think _this_ is an improvement?" Rodney frowned at John in surprise.

"_I don't_," Sheppard explained, "but they might."

"Well whoever they are," Ronon announced, "one of them is coming over here."

Sheppard turned and watched as a young woman of a similar height to Teyla approached them slowly. Her hair was long and very dark, standing out starkly against the simple white dress she wore.

"Hello," she greeted them with a smile, blue eyes twinkling in friendly greeting. "I am Patentia. Welcome to New Atlantis."

**Authors Note:**

Patentia (Pa-ten-ti-a) – Latin name meaning patience, from freereg dot rootsweb dot com/howto/latinnames dot htm

Also I have no idea on the range of the hand held scanners so took some license on that one that they'd be able to pick up general features from a reasonable distance but details only when they were much closer.


	10. We can’t fix it without help

**Chapter 10: We can't fix it ... without help**

"Ah ... hello," Sheppard greeted the woman in return. "I'm Lt Colonel John Sheppard, that's Doctor Rodney McKay, Ronon Dex and Teyla Emmagen," he gestured to each of them in turn. "You call this place _New_ Atlantis?"

"That is correct," Patentia agreed. "It recognises our path from the city of our origins. I am puzzled by your attire – where have you travelled from?"

"It's funny you calling this New Atlantis," Sheppard made the decision on the spot to cut straight to the chase. "We've just come from the _old_ Atlantis – the city is in trouble and we could really use your help."

"That is impossible," the first signs of less than friendly emotions flittered across Patentia's face as she registered what John had said. "Atlantis sank to the bottom of the ocean thousands of years ago and was lost forever."

"You might need to update your history books," Sheppard explained. "The city _was_ at the bottom of the ocean when we found it but we raised it and we've been living there for almost three years now."

"If it was still submerged then how did you get there?" Patentia was interested despite her lack of belief in their story.

"We came through the Stargate from Earth," Sheppard revealed, adding when Patentia didn't look enlightened, "in the Milky Way galaxy – big belt of stars?"

"Ah yes," Patentia nodded reluctantly. "One of the places my people settled in their quest for a permanent home. You used the Stargate to travel here as well?"

"We found your Dequitas device," Sheppard replied, giving her plenty of information so she couldn't doubt their sincerity or the validity of their request for assistance. "I got the nine symbol gate address from that."

"This is ... I must speak with our leaders," Patentia said, her whole air one of confusion and uncertainty. "Please ... I will show you to a place you can rest and await an audience with the city council."

"Ah ... okay," Sheppard raised an eyebrow at the others, getting vague nods and shoulder shrugs back in return. Patentia turned and led them silently through each of the ring buildings until they found themselves in the centre of the city. The garden there was like a summary of all the strange, precise, vibrant and excessively colourful things they'd already seen – as such it pretty much defied description.

"The plants in this garden have existed since the birth of this plane of existence," Patentia revealed. "The city was built around them, both to preserve and protect them."

"From what?" Rodney spoke up without thinking. When everyone looked at him pointedly he frowned. "It's just that from what I can see this place is idyllic – I can't imagine what threats are out there that it would need a whole city to keep them out."

"Our home _is_ idyllic," Patentia agreed, "but we have come to realise that there is nowhere on any plane of existence free from the balance of light and dark."

"You have enemies?" Sheppard realised what she had said, looking at her in surprise.

"I will tell the council of your arrival and that you seek assistance," Patentia said without answering John's question. Before anyone could speak further she turned and walked briskly back inside the innermost ring building.

"Well that was ... disturbing," Sheppard offered, walking towards a set of stone benches arranged in the middle of the garden and sitting down on one.

"And I notice she failed to answer your question about enemies too," Rodney took a seat on the bench across from Sheppard.

"I can't see any evidence of attack or weapons," Ronon's whole demeanour made it clear he was on alert ... he didn't trust the situation despite the lack of anything to give him a reason for that.

"Not all conflicts result in battle," Teyla offered, "and not all battles are fought by means of weapons and defences."

"Is it likely they're gonna help us?" Rodney asked the question they'd all been thinking.

"They know about Atlantis," Sheppard pointed out, "and they've still got a soft spot for it if the name of their new home is any indicator."

"There is hope they will be sympathetic," Teyla concluded.

x

It took more time than Sheppard would have liked before Patentia returned with another Ancient in tow.

"This is Hieronymus – he holds the principal seat on the city council," Patentia introduced her companion. Sheppard's internal 'I have a bad feeling about this' instinct kicked in when he got a good look at the guy – his general appearance more than a little reminiscent of the Asuran leader Oberoth.

"Welcome to our city," Hieronymus said, nodding to each member of team Sheppard as Patentia introduced them.

"I assume Patentia filled you in on why we're here," John got straight down to business.

"She did," Hieronymus acknowledged. "It is a pity you were unable to make contact with us _before_ making the journey here."

"Why is that?" Sheppard asked the question even though he was pretty sure he knew what the guy would say.

"We are unable to help you," Hieronymus said with no obvious remorse and no suggestions for who might.

'_You mean you don't want to help us_,' Sheppard thought to himself, noticing that Patentia was maintaining the same bland expression as Hieronymus. "You're descended from the original inhabitants of Atlantis right?" he asked aloud.

"We are," Hieronymus agreed.

"How did you get here?" Sheppard persisted. "And I don't mean through the Stargate – how it is there's even a Stargate here – did you guys set that up?"

"I suppose it will not hurt to share with you our history," Hieronymus said reluctantly, moving to sit on one of the unoccupied benches. "The fact that you are here implies that you are aware of our goal to Ascend into beings of pure energy," he waited until everyone acknowledged that before continuing. "At many points in our history portions of our race were more committed to this aim than others. Such was the case on Atlantis. When it became clear the Wraith were an insurmountable enemy that group devoted all their focus to achieving that state with partial success. Not wanting to leave the rest of their people behind they endeavoured to explore the higher plane, discovering it was a destination much like another dimension or reality."

"They worked out that if they had the means they could travel here without Ascending first," Rodney couldn't help but clarify his understanding of what Hieronymus was telling them.

"That is correct," Patentia spoke up, using Rodney's interruption to find her place within the conversation. "The first of their group to achieve Ascension built the Stargate you arrived through, risking the wrath of the others but determined to save everyone from the Wraith. When the decision was made to retreat back to your planet they urged the rest of their group as well as any others who wished it to join them through the Stargate instead."

"Did they put the gate address into the Dequitas device?" Sheppard asked curiously.

"They wanted to ensure that others could follow them in the future if they so desired," Patentia explained, "and that they could return home if circumstances changed."

"It was their act of facilitating future access to this plane that prompted the other Ascended beings to intervene," Hieronymus added. "They disabled the communication device and threatened banishment if the newly Ascended failed to commit to their non interference policy."

"They committed to that, didn't they?" Rodney guessed.

"Most did," Hieronymus agreed, "although some persisted in their efforts to make life easier for the people they had encouraged to move here. They were banished from the ranks of the Ascended and forced to live out the remainder of their lives as corporeal beings again. History records that those who remained on Atlantis made preparation to sink the city before retreating through the Stargate, including removing all evidence of this place to protect us should the Wraith discover where we had gone."

"The Wraith are still a threat," Sheppard took over the narrative at that point. "We've made some headway in defeating them but that's all gonna be for nothing if the city falls."

"The power supply unit is dying," Rodney explained to Hieronymus. "We can't fix it ... without help."

"I wish that we could help you but it just isn't possible," Hieronymus denied their request yet again.

"It wouldn't take much for you to give us a new PSU," Rodney persisted. "Surely the Ascendeds wouldn't protest at that!"

"Our technology has moved on almost beyond recognition since we left Atlantis," Hieronymus explained. "Our power supply systems are no longer compatible."

"Oh," Rodney looked around curiously. "This ... ah ... there isn't any evidence you've got a higher level of technology here."

"We have had 10,000 years to transform and evolve our methods and understanding," Hieronymus looked at Rodney almost with amusement.

"Do you know where we could find a replacement power supply unit?" Sheppard asked.

"We cannot help you," Hieronymus reiterated, getting up to look down on them. "You are welcome to rest here before leaving our city."

"Surely you don't want to see Atlantis disabled!" Sheppard exclaimed, getting up too. "Just put us on the right path and we'll do the rest!"

"I am sorry," Hieronymus said sadly, "but only you can find the right path for yourselves."

"Enough with the mystical Ascension crap," Sheppard retorted heatedly. "Are you that scared of the Ascendeds that you aren't willing to take even a small risk?"

"Things are not as simple as they appear," Hieronymus began. "The –"

A loud ringing sound interrupted him before he could finish. Hieronymus and Patentia turned and ran from the garden without explanation. Motioning for the others to follow, Sheppard ran after them, heading back down the corridor towards the outermost building where they'd entered. Sheppard and the others ground to a halt just behind Hieronymus, in time to witness the shield - a shimmering green curtain - rising from the ground in front of them. Rather than curving up over the city like they might have expected it shot straight up into the sky going further than human eyes could track.

Moments later the shield shifted and glowed with the evidence of impact from the other side.

"What's going on?" Sheppard drew the council leader's attention back to them.

"The Nahtoo," Hieronymus said as though they should know what that meant. "They come often to check on us ... but not usually to attack like this." Turning he narrowed his eyes, looking at each of them in turn. "Is it possible that you have some genetic connection to our ancestors?"

"McKay and I have what we call the ATA gene," Sheppard admitted in puzzlement. "It's the gene that allows us to operate the Atlantis technology ... that's how we were able to take up residence in the city in the first place."

"Of course,' Hieronymus nodded in understanding. "Have you made use of the gene since you arrived?"

"McKay's got a scanning unit," Sheppard admitted with a puzzled frown. "That's how we found your city."

"The Nahtoo are here for you," Hieronymus announced grimly. "I am sorry Colonel Sheppard – you and your companions must leave immediately."


	11. Talk about punishment

**Chapter 11: Talk about punishment**

"What?" Sheppard asked in amazement. "You're gonna send us out there to face who knows what?"

"The Nahtoo will not leave until they have what they came for," Hieronymus explained.

"But you have a shield," Rodney protested, pointing to the column of green light in front of them – still flashing from the persistent attacks. "Surely you're not worried they can get in?"

"The Nahtoo breeching the shield is not our only concern," Hieronymus replied.

"We should leave," Ronon advised grimly, glancing at Sheppard with an impatient expression. "We don't need these people."

"_Ronon_," Teyla cautioned softly. "We have no idea what we would be facing should we step beyond the protection of the shield."

"Teyla's right," Sheppard agreed, turning back to Hieronymus. "We came here peacefully ... but we're not going anywhere. I don't understand your unwillingness to help Atlantis and I had no intention of forcing the issue. But our people are depending on us ... if we go out there unprotected we won't be able to fulfil our mission."

"Don't make me resort to force either Colonel Sheppard," Hieronymus said in a threatening tone.

"That's not exactly the right attitude for a bunch of Ascension wannabes now is it?" Sheppard quipped somewhat snidely.

"You mistake our goals," Hieronymus said faintly amused. "We have not sought Ascension since shortly after we arrived here."

"You gave up on Ascension?" Rodney almost gaped in astonishment. "Why would you do that?"

"Patentia alluded to the balance of light and dark," Teyla offered. "Was that not referring to these Nahtoo?"

"Partially," Hieronymus agreed. "We cannot accommodate you here – not without risking everything we have sacrificed for generations."

"Wait a minute!" Rodney protested suddenly. "_You're all Ancients_ – how could the Nahtoo possibly detect us here in a city full of Ancients?!"

Before he could respond, the air in front of Rodney shimmered and opened, admitting an entity everyone except Ronon had seen before ... an Ascended being. Sheppard stepped in front of Rodney, making it clear that any form of retribution or communication with them was going through him first. The bright light from the entity surrounded them, blinding in its intensity to the point they were all forced to close their eyes.

When they opened them the scene that greeted them was completely different from the one they'd just left. They were in a large room, brightly lit, with a wooden table and chairs in the centre.

"Please, sit," the Ascended being shifted from glowy ball with swirling tentacles of light into the figure of a young, dark haired Ancient woman wearing the customary white dress.

"I think we'll stand for the moment," Sheppard decided, motioning for his team to stay where they were. Looking around suspiciously he asked "Where are we?"

"This is the Placitum," she said simply, "the place where those of my kind meet from time to time."

"And who might you be?" John asked with casual curiosity.

"I am Gratia," she introduced herself. "And you are Lt Colonel John Sheppard and Doctor Rodney McKay of Earth, Teyla Emmagen of Athos and Ronon Dex of Sateda."

"Well you're certainly well informed aren't you," Sheppard frowned at that thought. "You've been keeping an eye on us?"

"It is my task to monitor all attempts to communicate with or travel to this plane of existence," Gratia replied. "I knew of your people from the moment you first touched the Dequitas."

"Then you know what's happening back on Atlantis!" Rodney made that leap immediately. "You could help us."

"I am afraid that will not be possible Doctor McKay," Gratia denied.

"Then why did you bring us here?" Sheppard demanded somewhat angrily.

"We did not stop you from travelling here because to do so would contravene everything we believe about interacting with lower beings," Gratia said. "For this reason we cannot help you either."

"Not even to save the city you helped create?" Sheppard said harshly.

"Not even for that," Gratia agreed simply, pinning John with an intent blue gaze that showed she was not bothered by his accusations.

"Have you not already interfered by removing us from New Atlantis?" Teyla asked with a puzzled frown.

"If the Nahtoo had captured you they would have understood immediately that Atlantis is populated again," Gratia pointed out, "and by humans with genetic links to the people residing here. We were in agreement that this could not be allowed to happen."

"They'd attack Atlantis?" Ronon turned away from his inspection of the room to look at Gratia intently.

"They were the first race to achieve a state of pure energy - and have made it their sacred mission to destroy any others who attempt to ascend to this realm," Gratia explained. "The development of my people to the point where we were capable of Ascension was accompanied by real changes in our genetic code. The 'power' genes that represented our advancement beyond other races - telepathy, telekinesis, foresight - became more common. When my people first arrived here they set out to continue that journey and join the rest of their people who had already Ascended."

"And the Nahtoo stopped you?" Sheppard had a bad feeling he knew where this tale was going.

"They believe their race to be the only one worthy of attaining this state," Gratia shimmered into pure energy before shifting back to her human form. "In eliminating those with the power genes they believed they could destroy any chance for others to Ascend."

"A religious crusade," Sheppard muttered, turning away to glance worriedly back at Ronon. "Sounds familiar."

"So all those people back on New Atlantis ...," Rodney trailed off uncertainly.

"Those of us most recently Ascended banded together to protect the Lanteans until they could construct defences to protect themselves," Gratia continued the story. "They built New Atlantis and the shield you saw and then set about altering their genetic makeup to remove anything the Nahtoo could use to target them. It has been a number of generations now since the Nahtoo have detected anything to prompt an attack such as the one that took place today."

"Because we have the activation gene?" Sheppard frowned in confusion. "I'd hardly call the ability to turn on some technology a 'power'!"

"The presence of that gene within you indicates your potential to Ascend in the future," Gratia countered, "at least in the minds of the Nahtoo," she looked at John intently. "You in particular have a very strong manifestation of our genetic makeup."

"How come your people didn't just return to Atlantis?" Sheppard ignored the last part of what she'd said. "Why give up everything they were just to stay here?"

"They believed the city was lost to them and that the Wraith held dominance over the entire galaxy," Gratia insisted. "Besides, it took time to understand the full implications of living here - to understand the Nahtoo as the enemy they are."

"And to understand how being Ascended was just as negative, in its own way," Sheppard pointed out.

"Yes," Gratia agreed simply. "By then we were committed to staying here."

"I'm confused," Sheppard approached Gratia now, stopping a few steps away and staring at her intently. "You're part of the same group of Ascended Ancients we've come across before right?"

"In a manner of speaking," Gratia replied evasively.

"How come they're letting you talk to us like this?" Sheppard asked. "Don't you have some kind of group rule about that?"

"We do," Gratia agreed. "I haven't told you anything you could not have found out through other means. There are those of us who believe that giving the Nahtoo purpose outside this plane of existence would be a mistake with far reaching consequences but ... we are constrained to uphold our highest ideals."

"So it's the usual hypocritical song and dance then," Sheppard shook his head irritably. "Look at what happened with the Ori - why don't you guys just fight back for once?!"

"We did," Gratia surprised them all with that response. "The first of our race to achieve this state remained in the lower plane at first. Existence was ... unsatisfying ... to be able to observe the lives of their brethren but not be a part of it was troubling ... the temptation to interact very difficult to resist. You mentioned the Ori so you know what happened to those who chose to remain so closely linked with the lower plane. For the rest, they knew they would have to move on and in their search for something else they found this higher plane - and were confronted with the Nahtoo upon their arrival. They chose to fight rather than retreat ... resulting in many of their number locked forever in pitched battle with their foe. The Nahtoo were too strong to defeat, but not strong enough to wipe them from existence ... and so a compromise was reached. They would not interfere with the Nahtoo or the lives of any lower beings - especially in providing assistance for others to Ascend - and in return they would be left in peace."

"So they sacrificed their own people for an easier existence?" Sheppard asked incredulously.

"When the agreement was reached Atlantis was strong and our people dominant in the Pegasus Galaxy," Gratia pointed out. "They had no way of knowing how far we would fall ... or how hard it would be to watch and do nothing to help."

"Some of you did try to help?" Teyla asked compassionately.

"Of course," Gratia replied almost angrily. "And they were punished by the rest of my kind - most banished from Ascension and forced to live forever in corporeal form."

"Wait," Rodney held up a hand impatiently. "Forever? There are people in New Atlantis who've been around for more than 10,000 years?"

"Yes," Gratia admitted, her tone now filled with a deep sadness. "They have memory of what they once were but have been stripped of all their powers."

"Talk about punishment," Rodney looked over at Sheppard. "No wonder the rest of them don't want to risk stepping out of line!"

"Okay so you're not going to help us get a new power supply unit," Sheppard bounced back into action mode. "Is there anything you can do?"

"The Nahtoo have given up on their attack," Gratia reported. "I will return you to New Atlantis."

"And that's it?" Rodney asked incredulously. "That's the best you can do?"

"Rodney," Teyla admonished. "Gratia has saved us from the Nahtoo." Turning back to Gratia she added graciously "we thank you for your assistance and for sharing your story with us."

"You are most welcome," Gratia smiled, "although you and Ronon did not actually require my assistance."

"Can you just tell us if there's any point in continuing to search for a power supply unit?" Rodney almost begged.

"I cannot," Gratia replied regretfully. "In any case, would you give up if I said there was not?"

"No," Sheppard looked at Gratia thoughtfully for a few moments. "Okay gang, let's pack it up and get out of here."

"But ..." Rodney spluttered, frowning at John's apparently easy capitulation.

"I assume you'll return us back to where you picked us up?" Sheppard asked Gratia, ignoring Rodney's protests.

"I will," Gratia laid a hand on John's arm. "Good luck John Sheppard."

"Ah ... you too," Sheppard replied uncertainly.

"We still ... care," Gratia offered somewhat cryptically. Before John could question her further the room around them flashed brightly, fading back to the normal spectrum to reveal the entrance to New Atlantis.


	12. You spoke with Gratia?

**Chapter 12: You spoke with Gratia?**

Sheppard and the others moved to step just inside the city before stopping to converse about their next course of action.

"You've got a plan?" Ronon asked Sheppard in a way that suggested he already knew the answer was yes.

"Gratia very carefully gave us everything we needed," Sheppard agreed.

"Huh?" Rodney looked confused. "She didn't tell us anything!"

"Not in so many words," Sheppard replied, turning back to Ronon and Teyla. "A large part of this is gonna fall to you," he admitted. "I can't order you to take that on."

"Atlantis is our home as well," Teyla said comfortably. "We are ready."

"Ready to do what?" Rodney almost stamped his foot in frustration.

"Gratia said Teyla and Ronon didn't need to be saved," Sheppard reminded Rodney. "They don't have any of the Ancient genetic material - meaning they can move around freely. Gratia asked if we would give up if she said there wasn't a PSU somewhere for us to find."

"So?" Rodney frowned at John.

"She didn't have to add that part - she could have just stuck with the 'we can't help' line but she deliberately pointed out that she knew we wouldn't stop. Why would she do that?"

"Because there's a PSU somewhere!" Rodney finally made the connection.

"I think so," Sheppard confirmed. "Which means we have to split up. Teyla - you and Ronon will go for the PSU while McKay and I create a distraction elsewhere."

"You're gonna make us bait?" Rodney paled sickly. "That's a terrible plan!"

"If you've got a better one now's the time to speak up," Sheppard waited for Rodney to offer something, only continuing when Rodney remained silent. "Okay, then that's the plan. Listen McKay - it took a couple of hours for the Nahtoo to turn up the first time, right?" When Rodney nodded reluctantly Sheppard grinned. "Okay, so we steer clear of using the Ancient scanner unless Teyla and Ronon need it - with any luck they can find what we need _before_ the Nahtoo even know we're back."

"Fine, but aren't you forgetting something?" Rodney looked at John expectantly.

"Teyla and Ronon don't know where to look," Sheppard smiled at Rodney's crestfallen expression that he hadn't forgotten anything. "But I know someone who does."

"You believe one of the Ascended Ancients returned to corporeal form will assist us?" Teyla asked.

"That was the other thing Gratia said that really struck me," Sheppard replied. "She made a point of telling us those that had been punished still retained their memories. If anyone knows where a PSU might be located, it'd be one of them."

"Patentia," Ronon was the first to see what Sheppard intended.

"She was careful," John offered, "but there was something in how she talked about coming here as well as the strong resemblance ... I think there's a good chance she's one of these returned Ascendeds."

"Let's go find her then," Ronon turned towards the central corridor.

Walking back through the city they approached the first inhabitant they came across and asked politely where they might find Patentia. Instead of directions they were led to a small room inside the city where Patentia sat reading.

"You have returned," Patentia got up to greet them. "You were much blessed to receive such an audience - it is a great honour to speak with the Ascended."

"If you say so," Sheppard quipped, "although I would have thought, having been one yourself, you wouldn't look at them like that." Watching carefully Sheppard saw just enough in Patentia's face before she carefully blanked her expression to know he was right.

"You are mistaken," Patentia sat down and picked up her book determinedly. "It would be wise for you to leave the city ... Hieronymous will not be so congenial should he discover you here."

"I'm not mistaken," Sheppard drew her attention back to him with the few steps he took towards her. "Gratia practically gave you away so there's really no point in denying it."

"You spoke with Gratia?" Patentia asked almost wistfully.

"Yeah - and she told us enough to put us on the right track," Sheppard agreed. "That's how you knew so much about what motivated those Ascended Lanteans to provide a means for the rest of your people to come here in corporeal form - because you were one of them."

"Gratia and I both," Patentia offered sadly. "She was my sister ... before, back on Atlantis ... we were close. I could not stand by and watch the people we had encouraged to come here being hunted by the Nahtoo and so I and many others provided that protection I spoke of, until our friends could build their own. In some way the others of our kind must have supported our endeavour because they did not stop us until _after_ we had saved our people."

"Did Gratia not stand by you when you were punished by the others?" Teyla asked in a gentle tone.

"She wanted to," Patentia admitted, "but I would not let her, just as I refused to let her help protect our people. It was enough that I was banished without her sharing the same fate."

"Well she must have known we spoke to you," Sheppard offered, "because at the end there she said 'we still care'."

"Oh," Patentia turned away, raising a shaking hand to her face as emotions overwhelmed her.

"It is difficult to be separated from family," Teyla moved closer to lend support. "I believe Gratia feels this as much as you do."

"Thank you," Patentia said after taking the time to get herself back under control. "Will you tell me what Gratia said?"

Sheppard repeated everything he could remember, with Teyla filling in the gaps and offering some of the emotional subtext Sheppard had been oblivious to.

"Can you tell us more about the Nahtoo?" Rodney asked. "Where did they come from?"

"We do not know," Patentia admitted, seeming grateful for the shift in topic. "All we were sure of was that they either created or somehow altered this realm to look as it does, presumably to simulate an environment they were comfortable with."

"So they're like the ultimate neat freaks," Sheppard quipped, sighing when Patentia just looked at him in confusion.

"Is it just having the activation gene that attracts them," Rodney as usual tried to get as much information as he could, "or actually using the gene?"

"To begin with it was only use of the power genes that seemed to provoke their attacks," Patentia answered. "However, there were occasions when the Nahtoo identified individuals who still possessed those genes even when it appeared they had done nothing to attract attention."

"So McKay and I might be in trouble out there even if we don't use any of our Ancient equipment," Sheppard summarised. Patentia nodded wordlessly. "Okay we understand all that, but you still haven't answered the original question. Is there a power supply unit or not?"

"Did Gratia not explain things?" Patentia asked, a troubled frown appearing on her face when they all looked confused. "Finding a power supply unit will not help you."

"Why the hell not?" Sheppard asked irritably.

"It is not possible to return back to the lower plain through the Stargate," Patentia said starkly.

"_What?_" Sheppard stood up abruptly.

"You cannot dial Atlantis," Patentia reiterated. "You require a nine symbol gate address just as you did to get here and no such address exists. I am sorry Colonel Sheppard," Patentia said sadly. "You and your team must remain here."

"We have eight of those nine symbols already," Sheppard said confidently. "I found the lower plain reference back on Atlantis. We just need the ninth symbol - the point of origin."

"The symbol you found on Atlantis _cannot_ be the lower plain reference," Patentia corrected him forcefully. "It must be the point of origin for the New Atlantis forest gate. As I said the symbol for the lower plain no longer exists ... and without it you will not be able to return home."

**Authors Note:**

For anyone wondering why the Nahtoo wouldn't know immediately that Team Sheppard was back I've never been a believer in the whole "I'm Ascended and therefore I know everything about everything" deal - too many mistakes like the Ori, Anubis, etc for that to possibly be true. They've got powers sure, but it's a big place and they've got a lot of ground to cover looking elsewhere. That's how it works in my little Ascended world!


	13. The facility has a Stargate

**Chapter 13: The facility has a Stargate**

"Oh this just gets better and better," Rodney muttered sickly.

"I didn't think it was possible to have a one way Stargate," Sheppard protested. "There has to be a symbol somewhere!"

"Ordinarily you would be correct," Patentia agreed. "When the Nahtoo became a threat it was agreed to remove all reference of the ninth symbol to protect the lower plain."

"They're ascended too," Rodney protested. "Surely they don't need a Stargate to go anywhere they want!"

"We were not the only ones to bring some of our people here still in corporeal form," Patentia shocked them with the next bombshell. "The Nahtoo have a large contingent of their own people here, still striving for Ascension. If they were to travel through the Stargate to Atlantis it would shift the balance of power in the Pegasus Galaxy. We exist together peacefully only because we do nothing to draw attention to ourselves or threaten them."

"You were Ascended though," Sheppard pointed out. "Can't you remember the ninth symbol from when you first came here?"

"As a group my race are strong," Patentia denied that hope. "When I was banished they removed all knowledge of that to stop me from returning to Pegasus."

"Not much of a punishment if you can escape somewhere else?" Sheppard saw the reasoning. "Well forgive me if we don't give up quite that easily," Sheppard denied the possibility they were really stuck there. "I'm sure Gratia wouldn't have given us any hope if we couldn't get home."

Patentia looked at Sheppard intently for a few moments, clearly thinking over everything he'd shared. "There is a power supply module," she finally confirmed what they'd suspected.

"Where is it?" Rodney asked eagerly.

"This is not the only city we've built here," Patentia revealed. "There is another some distance away with an archive of our past."

"Like a museum?" Rodney offered with some excitement.

"Indeed," Patentia smiled at his enthusiasm. "With our shift to a non gene based technology there were many items my people brought with them that were no longer required. Rather than destroy them they decided to build a monument to our ancestors - to remind us all of what we've both given up and gained in coming here."

"Can you give Ronon and Teyla directions to get there?" Sheppard asked hopefully.

"The facility has a Stargate," Patentia said, almost enjoying the incredulous looks team Sheppard exchanged. "We have many settlements here - we built a network of Stargates to connect us. In truth it made this realm feel more like home to have such a familiar means of transportation at our disposal – safe from attention by the Ascended Nahtoo because it does not rely on the power genes to operate or control it and so does not contravene our agreement."

"Okay, give Teyla the address and they'll head out straight away," Sheppard said crisply, "assuming you _are_ going to help?"

"I am," Patentia agreed with another smile, turning to Teyla and Ronon. "You will not need to walk - I can transport you to the Stargate now."

"Wait a minute," Rodney protested. "How are they even gonna know what to look for? I should go with them!"

"The Nahtoo may be able to track you McKay," Sheppard pointed out. "We can't risk jeopardising the mission - you'll just have to describe the PSU - hell, draw them a picture!"

x

"We will be able to locate the device," Teyla told John confidently a short while later. "Do you still intend to create a diversion?"

"Not now we have to search for the ninth symbol," Sheppard said thoughtfully. "I can't afford to be stuck behind the shield here if the Nahtoo take the bait. We're just gonna have to hope a quick trip in and out doesn't any draw unwanted attention ... if you run into problems you can contact us through the Gate and we'll do something then."

"Agreed," Teyla nodded to them both before turning back to Patentia expectantly.

"Rodney and I will find that symbol," Sheppard promised, watching with some trepidation as Ronon and Teyla followed Patentia from the room. "Don't do anything stupid!" he called out to their retreating backs.

Turning back to Rodney he gestured to his pack. "Why don't you start by looking through those photos you took of the Gate - see if anything jumps out at you."

"And what are you going to be doing?" Rodney demanded.

"Thinking," Sheppard said simply, leaning back in one of the chairs and propping his feet on the table, closing his eyes on Rodney's suspicious look.

"Sleeping more like it," Rodney muttered, grumbling as he pulled out his digital camera.

x

Patentia returned half an hour later, telling them she had transported herself, Teyla and Ronon to the Stargate. She'd dialled the right address after showing Teyla and Ronon how to transport themselves to the city once they'd returned back through the Stargate, hopefully with a new PSU in hand.

"Why aren't you concerned about helping us?" Sheppard asked as soon as she'd sat down. "Hieronymus seemed almost fearful at the thought."

"He was concerned the unascended Nahtoo would be attracted by the interest of their Ascended brothers," Patentia explained. "The risk is small now the Nahtoo have broken off their attack."

"Wouldn't the shield protect you?" Rodney asked in confusion.

"This city _is_ well protected but there are other less protected areas that would be in danger, and," Patentia hesitated before admitting, "the unascended Nahtoo are as technologically advanced as us. We would rather not give them opportunity to study our shield. When we helped the Lanteans create it we linked it into the power of our own Ascendeds to stop the unascended Nahtoo from being able to breach it ... to this day it remains our greatest advantage against them."

"Oh," Rodney nodded at the logic of that.

"Have you got anything that flies?" Sheppard changed the subject abruptly.

"We aren't here to satisfy your childish pilot fantasies Colonel," Rodney protested.

"Not childish McKay," Sheppard didn't take offense. "I need to see everything from the air."

"Why?" Rodney asked with a sarcastic edge. "Do you think the Ascended Ancients carved the ninth symbol into the ground or something?"

"Of course not," Sheppard denied. "I just have a hunch it'll be useful."

"There are flying ships in storage," Patentia offered. "Although it has been many thousands of years since anyone has attempted to use them."

"They have Puddle Jumpers," Sheppard turned to Rodney with a grin.

"Reality check Colonel," Rodney said grimly. "You need to use the ATA gene to fly the Jumper ... which means the Nahtoo will definitely be able to track you."

"Okay, we'll give Teyla and Ronon time to get the power supply unit first. When they report in from the Stargate we'll head out in the Jumper to their position." Sheppard suggested.

"You're that confident you'll find the symbol from the air?" Rodney asked in amazement.

"I don't know why," Sheppard said reluctantly, "but yeah."

"Perhaps you would like a tour of the city while you wait," Patentia suggested. "It may be some time before your companions return."

"Won't Hieronymous have something to say about that?" Sheppard asked in surprise at the offer.

"He and the others are meeting in chambers on the other side of the city," Patentia replied without concern. "Your arrival here will have shaken the council ... they will be distracted for many hours yet."

"Okay, then McKay would love a tour, wouldn't you?" Sheppard agreed, looking at Rodney pointedly.

"Ah ... yes of course," Rodney agreed, correctly picking up that Sheppard wanted him to collect any intel possible.

"You do not wish to accompany us?" Patentia asked in surprise.

"I'd like to," Sheppard smiled, "but I should study the photos we took of the DHD – the dialling device – I need to be familiar with all the symbols we have to choose from _before_ we go anywhere."

"As you wish," Patentia agreed, motioning for Rodney to follow her.

Rodney exchanged a nervous look with Sheppard before heading off for his tour.

**Authors Note:**

In case you didn't notice I've sped up posting this story ... disappointingly it's not getting a lot of reader traffic so I might as well reward the loyal few reading it by giving you the extra chapters. Let me know if it's too fast though - I can go back to one a day. Apologies for any errors because I haven't edited to the nth degree like usual!


	14. They had a general humanoid appearance

**Chapter 14: They had a general humanoid appearance**

"Do you really know what this power supply thing looks like?" Ronon asked, glancing around him curiously. He and Teyla had arrived at the Ancient Museum only minutes before and were currently making their way through a large square room. Arranged irregularly around them were floating displays of various items – the objects inside suspended in a protective shield. The place was completely deserted - just as Patentia had said it would be.

"Doctor McKay was _very_ thorough in his descriptions," Teyla replied patiently, looking carefully at each display before moving on to the next one.

"This is gonna take a while," Ronon complained. "Didn't Patentia say there are a number of rooms like this within the Museum?"

"She did," Teyla agreed. "It does not matter how long it takes as long as we find what we need. Colonel Sheppard and Doctor McKay should be perfectly safe within the confines of New Atlantis for some time yet."

"Yeah," Ronon agreed, grinning a bit evilly as he added, "although knowing McKay he'll find some way to get the two of them in trouble."

"John is just as good at attracting unwanted attention," Teyla replied, smiling slightly at Ronon's teasing. Motioning that they should continue their search she turned towards the next section of displays.

Making slow and steady progress they finished the first room and moved on to the next, almost identical in appearance.

"Why would they even bother setting something like this up?" Ronon grumbled, long past boredom and well into impatience at their task.

"It is importance to preserve the history and culture of our past," Teyla gave her opinion. "To the Ancients these things represent the achievements of their race."

"They could have preserved all this using a lot less space," Ronon pointed out.

"Wouldn't they want their descendants to come here and see these links to their past?" Teyla questioned.

"Yeah - if their goal was to send them bored out of their skulls," Ronon retorted. Teyla smiled but made no reply to his implied complaint.

As with the first room they made slow and steady progress and had covered a third of the contents before Teyla held up her hand for Ronon to stop.

"I believe this display contains the power supply unit," she announced.

"Okay, how do we get it out?" Ronon walked around the hovering object, looking for something to switch it off.

"Patentia instructed me to take note of the display designation," Teyla undertook that task as she explained. "With this and the code she gave me we should be able to lower the unit from the control pad over there," she pointed to the wall beside the doorway.

Ronon stayed near the display as Teyla moved over to the control pad and followed Patentia's instructions. A faint hum and click sounded before the whole display floated slowly to the floor. Once down the shield around the PSU fluctuated and then went out.

Ronon had just bent down to pick it up when a sound from outside the room grabbed his attention. Striding silently over to Teyla he handed her the unit and motioned for her to stay where she was and maintain silence. Nodding her understanding Teyla slowly put the PSU into her backpack, shouldering the burden and then readying her weapon just in case.

Ronon moved stealthily towards the source of the sounds he'd heard – they were coming from the first room he and Teyla had searched. Crouching low he eased into a position to gather some intelligence on what his gut was telling him was a threat – more so because he and Teyla needed to go back to that room to use the Stargate.

A group of very odd looking people were engaged in an obvious search of the room ... more interested in looking around the displays than at them. That was enough for Ronon to realise that somehow these people knew he and Teyla were there ... and what's more that they were looking for them. Not that Ronon thought they knew him personally ... maybe they monitored the Stargate for activity and checked things out every time it was activated.

He'd thought 'people', but these were by far the strangest group of entities he'd ever seen. They had a general humanoid appearance – a head, body, two arms, two legs, and appendages that looked like hands and feet – but that's where the similarity ended. They were dressed in obvious armour but it was extremely ... colourful – like a rainbow on performance enhancing drugs. Their attire matched the rest of them though, rainbow coloured tufts of grass like hair covered their heads and their skin was also a swirling mess of colour that seemed to be lit from within.

Sticking close to the wall Ronon continued to observe, looking for signs of weapons but not finding anything that looked familiar – not that that really meant anything. Moving slowly away from the doorway Ronon made his way silently back to Teyla.

"I counted six," Ronon told Teyla. "No obvious weapons but it's a sure bet they've got some." He then went on to describe the appearance of the intruders, leaving Teyla frowning in concern.

"Perhaps they are the corporeal Nahtoo Patentia mentioned," Teyla suggested.

"Makes sense," Ronon agreed, "especially given their colour scheme. Looks out of place here but I think they'd blend in pretty well out there."

"We need to draw them away from the Stargate," Teyla said intently. "Perhaps some kind of ... diversion?"

"Give me your C4," Ronon held out a hand expectantly. "An explosion at the other end of the Museum should draw most of them away."

"Be careful," Teyla admonished, watching in concern as Ronon crept away again. The importance of their mission was foremost in her mind, the arrival of the corporeal Nahtoo threatening their ability to return the PSU to Atlantis in time. Teyla knew it wasn't as simple as them just getting back to New Atlantis ... the burden of getting them home still sat squarely on John's shoulders.

Teyla waited anxiously for Ronon to return, peering around the door at regular intervals to check for any sign of their foe. Finally, after a few minutes of tense surveillance Ronon appeared at the far end of the corridor, creeping silently back to Teyla's position.

"Get ready," he whispered, holding up the remote detonator.

BOOM! The sound of the explosion carried easily to their position, followed quickly by the sounds of running feet approaching ... passing ... and then fading away.

Peeking into the corridor, Ronon confirmed that all was clear before motioning for Teyla to go through. Holding weapons at the ready they proceeded cautiously towards the first room with resident Stargate fixed inside.

It only took a moment to confirm that two of the Nahtoo had remained behind to guard the Stargate. Ronon and Teyla exchanged silent glances – knowing they'd not get a better chance Teyla nodded to Ronon, indicating she'd take the right while Ronon took the left. Ronon held up three fingers, then two, then one.

In unison they rose swiftly from their positions, firing rapidly. Ronon watched in disbelief as the Nahtoo he'd aimed at rippled and then apparently disappeared. A second later it reappeared a metre away from its original position. Ronon fired again ... as before the Nahtoo rippled and disappeared before any of his shots could find their mark.

The same pattern was repeated a number of times over the next minute, each ripple and vanish bringing the Nahtoo closer to their position. Up close Ronon could see that the ripple was actually a rapid swirl of colour shifting to match the surroundings. They weren't disappearing at all, they were using their armour in some way to blend in with the colours around them – like a chameleon!

"Aim into their path," Ronon advised Teyla in a low tone. She nodded once, adjusting her sights for the Nahtoo's next appearance. "Now!" Ronan yelled.

They each fired rapidly at the space in front of where each Nahtoo took form, anticipating the next blending shift into the background that corresponded with real movement from the enemy. This time their shots found their targets ... Teyla relaxing in relief that the chameleon nature of the armour hadn't signalled shielding of a type the Earth weapons couldn't penetrate.

"Dial the Gate," Ronon yelled, turning to cover the doorway for the remaining Nahtoo who would already have been drawn back there by the weapons fire.

Teyla ran to the DHD and dialled the seven symbols for the forest Stargate ... the Gate kawhooshed as usual.

"Ronon," Teyla called him to her, raising her P90 to cover him as he ran towards the event horizon. Behind him two more Nahtoo appeared ... Teyla sprayed the doorway with rapid fire hoping to make them retreat.

Bzzz! Bzzz! Laser like weapons fire slammed into the floor leading up to the Gate, leaving black welts in the floor and cutting them off. Finding cover positions behind some of the larger displays. Ronon held up a flash grenade ... Teyla nodded to indicate she understood the plan.

Ronon did the same silent countdown as before, rising quickly on zero and hurling the flash bang into the doorway, before dropping back down again and covering his eyes.

Boom! The flash bang made their ears ring as its explosive force echoed throughout the enclosed space. Trusting that the resulting confusion would be enough for the few seconds distraction they needed, Teyla and Ronon jumped up and sprinted towards the Gate.

**Authors Note:**

I don't think I've ever done a large sequence like this without Sheppard or my OC in it somewhere ... hope my Ronon and Teyla voices were up to having a whole chapter to themselves!


	15. I have a bogey tailing me

**Chapter 15: I have a bogey tailing me**

"We have the device Colonel," Sheppard relaxed in relief when Teyla reported in on the radio two hours after they'd left to get the PSU. "We have just arrived at the forest Gate."

"Good work," he replied. "Stay there, we're coming to you."

"You must hurry John," Teyla said with some urgency in her tone. "We ran in to some resistance from what we can only assume was the corporeal Nahtoo at the Museum. There is some chance they will be able to follow us."

"Acknowledged," Sheppard responded. Turning to Patentia he asked "Can you show me that flying ship now?"

"Of course - this way," she agreed, motioning for the two of them to follow her.

"Are you sure this is a good idea?" Rodney ran to keep up with Sheppard as he strode quickly from the room after Patentia.

"No, but again it's the only one we've got," Sheppard said dismissively. "I'll drop you at the Gate first before doing an aerial sweep - hopefully I can find the symbol and dial the complete address long before the Ascended Nahtoo detect us."

They hurried down the corridor in the middle of the city, through the garden and then into the other side, progressing to the outermost building opposite from where they'd started. Patentia stopped at a large door and activated a control panel to open it.

"In here," Patentia turned on the lights to reveal a number of Puddle Jumper sized shapes covered in large protective sheets. Sheppard approached the nearest and removed the cover, sighing inwardly in relief when the familiar shape turned out to be a Jumper just as he'd hoped.

"McKay," Sheppard urged Rodney to get inside and check to make sure the Jumper was operational. Turning to Patentia Sheppard hesitated before speaking.

"Thanks for your help," he said simply. "Atlantis will owe its continuing survival to you ... it's not retribution for how the Ascendeds punished you but ... I hope it's something."

"It has been a welcome experience to meet you and your team Colonel," Patentia replied with an almost fond smile. "It pleases me to see how far our descendants have come since we left the lower plane of existence."

"You could come back with us you know," Sheppard offered. "I _will_ find that symbol and when I do there'll be no reason for you to stay here. Being back on Atlantis would give you purpose ... our fight against the Wraith could really use someone with your background and knowledge."

"Thank you for the offer," Patentia put a hand on John's shoulder in gratitude. "But I cannot leave here ... we have not spoken in millennia and yet I have not given up hope of seeing my sister again someday."

"Well there's still time if you change your mind," Sheppard reminded her. "Once we go back through the Gate though ... I'm not sure whether we'll be coming back here again."

"I understand," Patentia acknowledged. "Do not worry Colonel ... I am comfortable with my decision."

"Are we doing this or are you gonna stand around talking all day?" Rodney poked his head from the Jumper to query impatiently.

"Keep your shirt on McKay," Sheppard rolled his eyes at Patentia, who smiled in amusement, before turning and heading unhurriedly into the Jumper.

Everything inside was exactly the same as the Jumpers back on Atlantis so it took little time for Sheppard to power up the systems and manoeuvre the Jumper out of the city and up into the air. Distance that had taken over an hour on foot took only minutes to cover by air. Sheppard guided the Jumper down into the circular Gate clearing where Teyla and Ronon waited, landing close to the edge of trees.

John followed Rodney out the back of the Jumper to give orders he knew the others would not be happy with.

"Okay guys," he said confidently. "I'm gonna take the Jumper back up and do a few passes of the area - when I have the ninth symbol I'll dial the Gate. We won't know whether Atlantis has lowered the shield so we're gonna have to do this in two stages. Throw this through," Sheppard handed Teyla a sealed container, "it's a note I wrote for Elizabeth telling her to let us through and giving all the codes so she'll know we're not being coerced. I've requested she dial here and send something back to confirm the shield has been lowered. Once we get that I'll dial the Gate again - I want you to go straight through - no hesitation, no waiting for me. I'll follow as close behind you as I can manage but we can't afford for any of you to hesitate. Are we clear?"

"You're making yourself the bait," Rodney said in a voice of dawning horror.

"No," Sheppard denied. "We can't go anywhere without the ninth symbol - I don't know how but Gratia convinced me that it's my task to find it - that I _will_ find it if I look in the right place. Teyla and Ronon have to protect the PSU at all costs and we need you to get back to Atlantis to install it otherwise all of this will have been for nothing."

"We will do as you have requested John," Teyla cut off any further protest from Rodney. Grumbling unhappily Rodney stood to one side watching as Sheppard went back into the Jumper.

"All set," John radioed, taking the Jumper up and back towards the city. Reaching a higher altitude than before Sheppard scoured the countryside looking for something, anything that jumped out at him. He was starting to worry that maybe the feeling he'd had from Gratia was just his imagination when he started his third circuit of the area. Suddenly the Jumper shook violently, not a hit but more like something large had swiped the side. Sending the Jumper into a series of spirals Sheppard headed away from the Stargate, flying low over the city. Doing a 180 degree loop he witnessed the city shield rising slowly from the ground into the sky ... something about the configuration of the circular buildings on the ground with the column shield surrounding it struck a chord. Looking down at the Jumper dialling controls he smiled with the joy of discovering something really cool.

"I've got the symbol," Sheppard told his team. "I'm heading back to you but be advised - I have a bogey tailing me."

"One of the Nahtoo?" Rodney asked in dismay.

"I don't know McKay," Sheppard quipped sarcastically. "They didn't exactly stop and introduce themselves before trying to grab the Jumper right out of the sky!"

"Be careful John," Teyla said softly.

Sheppard flew in as unpredictable a pattern as he could manage, hoping his 'randomness' would confuse the Nahtoo. The Jumper shook a few times from swipes along the outside that just missed. Sheppard dialled the nine symbols rapidly, pressing the gate activation button with mental fingers crossed.

"Wormhole is engaged," Rodney reported. "We're sending the package through now." Sheppard flew away from the Gate, heading back to the city, trying to distract the Nahtoo from the rest of his team.

"The wormhole has disengaged," Teyla reported. "How are you doing?"

"Bogey is still tailing me," Sheppard reported rapidly. "I'm having to throw this thing around a lot to avoid getting hit ... don't worry, I can keep this up for a while yet."

"Understood," Teyla said somewhat unhappily.

Another few moments passed before Rodney came back on the line. "Incoming wormhole," he said excitedly. "Teyla's grabbing the package ... it's from Atlantis."

"It says 'Come on home'," Teyla read from Elizabeth's note. "The authentication codes are correct."

"That's it," Sheppard confirmed, quickly redialling the Gate. As soon as there was a connection he gave the order. "You three head through right now - I'm only a few metres from your position and coming in hot so I need you to get well clear asap."

"Acknowledged," Teyla agreed.

"Just make sure you actually do come through," Rodney added grimly. "We don't need any Colonel Hero episodes today."

"Just get that power supply unit back to Atlantis McKay," Sheppard retorted impatiently. "Let me worry about the rest."

John flew low over the trees in a wide arc to give the others time to get through before heading back towards the clearing.

"Teyla and Rodney are clear," Ronon reported as he made his turn. "I'm one step away from following them ... see you on the other side."

"See ya big guy," Sheppard replied, increasing his speed in preparation for his next move.

Slam! The Jumper came to a jarring stand still at the edge of the trees, so close to the Gate but not close enough.

"_Crap!_" Sheppard picked himself up from the floor, holding a hand over ribs that ached from him impacting with the pilot's console before being thrown from his seat. "What the hell was that?" Looking out the front view screen didn't bring any welcome relief. All he could see were bright swirling colours - thick enough there was no sign of the sky or trees he knew were just outside the Jumper.

A blinding flash of rainbow light filled his vision ... it was the pain that grabbed his attention a microsecond later.

"Oh God," he groaned out, struggling to open his eyes. He was standing in the Stargate clearing, no sign of the Puddle Jumper anywhere nearby. Directly in front of him was some kind of vortex swirling with motion that looked to him just like turbulence in the wake of a plane. The random thought struck him that Rodney would be less than impressed with him likening _another_ experience with that phenomenon.

So this was one of the Ascended Nahtoo. More rapidly than Sheppard could keep track of, complex geometric shapes slammed into motionlessness at the forefront of the display, revolving away and being replaced by other equally perfect configurations. The whole thing rippled with more colours than Sheppard had words to describe and was so bright it was hurting his eyes. He tried to turn his head away but found he was being held motionless - straining grimly he struggled to get free but was completely powerless.

"_Where do you come from Lower?_" the voice spoke directly in his head, vibrating harshly enough to convince Sheppard that his brain was actually physically shaking inside his skull.

"You wanna turn down the volume there?" he struggled to respond.

"_We asked you a question!_" the tone was even harsher than before, making the edges of Sheppard's vision wobble alarmingly.

"You keep at me like that and you won't ... get any ... information," Sheppard ground out painfully.

"_We tire of your insolence_," the Nahtoo replied. "_It is time we showed you how to appreciate your place in the order of life._"

Sheppard would have screamed if he could have but somehow the Nahtoo had closed up his vocal chords ... in fact every part of him felt clenched and squeezed beyond belief. The only screaming he could do was in his head ... a long drawn out '_HELP_' rising from deep inside his psyche, directed everywhere and nowhere all at the same time.

Abruptly the torture ended.

"_We ask you again Lower_," the voice vibrated insistently. "_Where are you from?_" After the pain he'd just experienced this felt mild - either that or his brain had gone numb from the abuse.

"I've been here all the time," Sheppard prevaricated. "I found the ship in a storage room and thought - why not?"

"_YOU LIE!_" Could a vibration yell? If so, that's what it was doing now. Sheppard groaned at the renewed pain, finding out that his brain wasn't quite numb enough. "_You share genetic material with those who dared ascend to our realm. HOW?!_"

"Genetic throwback?" Sheppard tried, desperate to put them off, even though he had no plan for getting out of this one.

The Nahtoo made the return of that clenching squeezing pain its reply.

Sheppard fell into that zone of experience where he was hardly aware of what was going on around him, his innermost self trying to protect him from what was happening to his physical self by drawing a veil of disconnection over him. That worked for a few moments until the clenching in his lungs resulted in him running out of air. He returned to active awareness gasping painfully. He struggled for breath his lungs had no room to hold, every muscle clenched beyond the point of agony. His vision wavered, spots appearing, lungs screaming ... was this going to be his end?

**Authors Note:**

You might be thinking the Ascended Nahtoo should have been able to swipe Sheppard out of the sky first go ... it all comes back to the question of how much power/talent does an Ascended being have? As a group sure they have lots of power and control but as individuals? I'm thinking not as much as you might expect ... otherwise Chaya would have been too powerful to have been tamed so easily and Morgan Le Fey would have been smart enough to give Daniel something without being caught ... just to name a couple of examples. IMHO anyway and so it is in my little Atlantis world. Thanks for sticking with the story - two more chapters to go which I'll try to post tomorrow night.


	16. I never asked her for help

**Chapter 16: I never asked her for help**

As suddenly as it had begun the ordeal was over. Sheppard felt himself falling the short distance towards the ground, his vision dimmed from the lack of oxygen and the brightness of the sky slamming into his pupils. And then he was there, stretched out painfully on his back close to the treeline, his only mission trying to get as much air into his lungs as he could.

Eventually he became aware of his surroundings again, moving his head to the side enough to look around him, fully expecting the next attack. The Nahtoo _was_ still there - instead of heading back to Sheppard to finish the job though it was surrounded by a familiar sight. An Ascended Ancient, swirling tentacles of white light, had engaged it. They battled, but not in a way Sheppard could understand.

He watched in sick amazement as the figures shifted and pulsed, unable to tell who was winning. A beam of light near the DHD captured his attention - the transportation device from the city had activated.

"Are you crazy?" Sheppard growled as Patentia appeared.

"Gratia battles the Nahtoo," Patentia replied, hovering near the Ascended light show as though she wanted to jump in and stop it but didn't know how.

"How could you possibly know that?" Sheppard demanded, rolling himself on to all fours. The change in position hadn't been a good idea though - his head swam and the feeling in his stomach said there was every chance whatever he'd eaten that morning would be making another appearance very soon. Sheppard flinched when he felt hands on his arms, helping to guide him into a sitting position.

"You are in pain," Patentia apologised. "I am sorry."

"Not your fault," Sheppard leant back against a tree trunk, closing his eyes wearily. "I don't think there's even an inch of me that doesn't hurt right now."

Silence fell over them as Patentia turned back worriedly towards where her sister battled the Nahtoo.

"How'd you know it was her?" Sheppard watched her expression curiously.

"She came to me," Patentia revealed. "I heard her voice ... apologising for abandoning me and telling me she would do something to make it right again. I knew ... she was coming here."

"I never asked her for help," Sheppard said before groaning. "Well actually I might have ... but I didn't mean to - it was more just a general 'help' to myself for a way to end that ... whatever that was."

"She would have made this decision freely," Patentia denied him any reason to feel guilty.

The light show drew their attention again - the flashing and spinning seemed more violent now - things were coming to a head.

"You should dial the Gate," Patentia urged, "before the Nahtoo have a chance to capture you again."

Struggling up and stumbling painfully over to the DHD, Sheppard punched the address in as fast as he could, waiting impatiently for the wormhole to stabilise.

"Atlantis, this is Sheppard. I'm sending through my IDC," he punched in the code and waited a few seconds. "I hope to hell you can hear me ... and that the shield's still down. Hold the Gate open."

"Go," Patentia urged when John made no move to leave.

"What about you?" Sheppard hesitated.

"I must remain here," Patentia shook her head, looking pointedly back at the battle still raging.

Sheppard stood just steps away from the event horizon, watching silently as the battle continued. He knew he should just go home but he couldn't - if Gratia failed to subdue the Nahtoo then Patentia would be in danger - he owed it to both of them to make sure she had an escape route.

The swirling mess of light suddenly froze - there was a flash accompanied by a shockwave big enough to ripple the trees around them. The multicoloured lights winked out leaving only the white lights behind, dimmed somewhat from before.

Sheppard watched as Patentia approached her sister slowly, holding out a shaking hand. Before she could make contact other lights suddenly appeared, swirling white tentacles around Gratia's form, glowing intensely. When they retreated they left the human form Sheppard had met before behind, lying motionless on the ground.

Punishment for interfering had been executed.

"Gratia?" Patentia dropped down to the ground beside the still body of her sister. There was movement, faint but there, provoking a relieved smile.

"You're here," Gratia said weakly, reaching for her sister's hand. Patentia clasped it tightly, helping to pull Gratia into a sitting position.

"Why did you do that?" Patentia asked almost sadly. "I have spent 10,000 years happy in the knowledge that at least you did not give up on our dream."

"And I have spent those years regretting that I let you talk me out of helping," Gratia countered, "missing you and feeling guilty that you were punished when I was not, even though our ideals were the same. When Colonel Sheppard first made contact I saw it as a sign that the time for change had arrived."

"Ah ... sorry to interrupt ladies," Sheppard offered hesitantly. "Should you be discussing this out in the open? The Nahtoo could return at any moment." His body felt like he'd been slammed against a really hard wall ... repeatedly ... and he would have liked nothing better than to go home and forget everything that had happened but there were things he could find out ... now that the danger was gone for the moment.

"They have been thwarted and will remain distant for a time," Gratia excused his worries easily. "You will need to return to your plain of existence as soon as possible however, to ensure the active Stargate does not draw their unascended brothers to this location."

"I'm going," Sheppard agreed, "I just had a couple of questions first. You gave me the ninth symbol didn't you – back in that room when you touched my arm?"

"You are most perceptive," Gratia said in surprise. "I did not give you the symbol itself – the others would have punished me immediately for providing that level of help. I just gave you the urge to fly, trusting that you would work it out for yourself."

"Well that was a bit risky," Sheppard complained. "What if I hadn't noticed that the outline of the city from the air was exactly the same as one of the symbols on the gate?"

"Then your mission would have failed," Gratia raised an eyebrow regally. "But you _did_ notice the similarity – and so you have nothing to complain about."

"I guess," Sheppard still frowned at how much had been riding on his powers of observation. "I'm kinda surprised your Ascended friends let New Atlantis be built looking like that."

"It was in the early days when our people first arrived," Gratia explained. "We did what we could to protect them, including giving them the means to return home ... hidden by design to protect Atlantis from the Nahtoo."

"Elaborate," Sheppard noted, "but I guess effective too. Will the Nahtoo come looking for us in the Pegasus galaxy?"

"That I cannot say," Gratia admitted. "They know that you exist even if your origins are unclear ... and they have many brethren here who would be happy to pursue you."

"Not really the answer I was hoping for," Sheppard said glumly. "Do you know where they came from originally or why they chose to come here?"

"The Nahtoo originated in a galaxy distant from any you know," Gratia replied. "Whether this place was here and they made it theirs when they Ascended or whether they somehow brought this entire plane of existence into being is a mystery ... much as existence in any form has _always_ been a mystery. We might explain the composition that encompasses a planet, a tree, a living entity ... but to explain why the building blocks are there? That is something, even as Ascended beings, we struggle with."

"Being Ascended does not immediately grant absolute knowledge or ability," Patentia added with a smile that said she'd learned that the hard way. "And who is to say that Ascension is the end of the road?"

"So I'm guessing you've both still got all your Ascended memories then," Sheppard quipped, having received an unnecessarily complex answer to what had been a simple question. Knowing Gratia though, there'd be a reason for everything she'd told him ... if he could figure out what it was. "I guess I should be leaving ... I know everyone back on Atlantis would say thanks for helping us ... and for restoring some of our faith in the Ancients. We might have lost sight of that a bit since we arrived in Pegasus."

"In helping Atlantis we have helped ourselves," Gratia replied graciously. "Good luck John Sheppard," Patentia and Gratia stood together, hands still clasped, watching as John limped painfully back towards the still open wormhole.

"Are you sure you don't want to come with me?" Sheppard paused to ask. When both women shook their heads firmly he nodded, having known that's how they'd respond but feeling compelled to offer anyway. John couldn't resist looking back just before he stepped through the gate. Movement near the edge of the tree line at the corner of his vision drew his attention.

"_We've got company_," he reported grimly, his words prematurely ending the first hug the sisters had shared in 10,000 years. "Behind you, in the trees."

Gratia turned, glancing into the forest before turning back to Sheppard. "The corporeal Nahtoo," she said urgently, pulling Patentia with her to the transportation device. "_Go!_ We will be safe back in the city."

White lights swept up from the transportation device, surrounding the two New Atlantians. Sheppard had time enough to register that they had gone, and to see the Nahtoo running into the clearing, before he made it into the wormhole.

"_It's about time!_" Rodney complained as soon as John had cleared the other side. Clearly he'd been pacing in front of the Stargate the whole time he'd been back.

"What are you standing around for McKay?" Sheppard said in his military commander's voice. "_Go fix Atlantis!!_"

Rodney jumped, looking guilty and relieved all at the same time, before hurrying from the Gateroom.

Sheppard had been running on pure adrenalin since that Nahtoo had released him. Unfortunately it seemed he'd left the adrenalin on the other side of the Gate - without it he felt himself abruptly making a less than graceful trip down to the floor. "You might want to get Beckett down here," he groaned out to Elizabeth before finally letting the pain and exhaustion take him away.

**Authors Note:**

I've edited and reedited this chapter but I'm still not entirely happy with it ... re the Gate staying open the precident is there from Coup D'Etat (season 2) where the Gate connection remained open for ages because the Genii were still sending a radio signal through. So that's what Atlantis did here. Last chapter coming right up!


	17. Let’s not borrow trouble

**Chapter 17: Let's not borrow trouble before we need to**

When Sheppard woke up in the infirmary he groaned silently ... more than a little tired of what were by now much too familiar surroundings.

"Doc?" he called out, surprised no one was sitting with him as usual.

"You're awake lad," Carson appeared from his office moments later, followed seconds later by Ronon who must have been hovering close by. "How are you feeling?"

"Like I got run over by a really big truck," Sheppard admitted freely, having struggled to raise himself into a semi reclining position. Every muscle in his body felt like it would if he'd done strenuous physical activity after a long stint of inactivity. His vision also appeared to be affected ... everything dulled and a bit blurry.

"I'm not surprised," Beckett replied. "I don't know what they did to you but you're readings were all over the shop ... like you'd completely depleted yourself of every resource. I don't know how you even managed to get yourself through the Stargate."

"It was the Ascended Nahtoo," Sheppard offered. "It felt like they were literally crushing the life out of every part of me – I don't know how I got out of that either. Patentia helped me up at the end there ... maybe she gave me something, just enough to get me home."

"Didn't Gratia say all her powers were removed when the Ascendeds punished her?" Ronon reminded Sheppard of that fact.

"Who knows with the Ascendeds," Sheppard countered. "They seem quite capable of bending their own rules to suit themselves, all the while telling us they never bend the rules!"

"Well you'll be pleased to know there's no permanent damage," Carson said with a relieved smile. "Most of your stats are already back in the normal range ... I'll keep you in for observation overnight and then we'll reassess you in the morning."

"What about the vision thing?" Sheppard asked a bit worriedly. "I gotta tell you ... everything's looking a little ... distorted right now."

"A normal side effect of prolonged exposure to excessive bright light," Carson replied. "Vision is as much about how your brain processes what your eye records as it is about the mechanics of how your eyes work. That's been reprogrammed to a certain extent by such a radically different visual environment and your brain needs the chance to switch back again. The rest of your team suffered the same effects for several hours after returning before their vision returned to normal. You're still affected because you've been unconscious ... your brain hasn't had a chance to do that adjusting yet."

"Oh," Sheppard glanced at Ronon for confirmation that he was okay.

"I'm good," Ronon agreed with Carson's assessment.

"You should be right in a couple of hours," Carson reassured Sheppard again. Turning to Ronon he added "you can stay for a few minutes but then the Colonel needs his rest."

"Did McKay install the new PSU?" Sheppard asked Ronon after Carson had returned to his office.

"He's still working on it," Ronon replied. "He complained the whole time he was waiting for his eyesight to get better ... said it was hindering his ability to install the PSU which apparently is a lot more complicated than anyone else could possibly appreciate."

"That sounds like McKay," Sheppard said in amusement. Slumping back to his pillow wearily he added "well at least we got what we needed."

"Yeah, along with another enemy," Ronon pointed out.

"We don't know that," Sheppard disagreed. "Let's not borrow trouble before we need to."

Ronon stayed for a bit longer before being shooed out by Carson. Sheppard drifted off to sleep, the last few seconds of his time in the higher plain of existence replaying over and over in his head, despite what he'd said to Ronon.

x

Sheppard insisted on being released from the infirmary the next morning after his overnight stay ... he still ached all over but since his readings were back to normal and there was nothing else wrong with him Carson couldn't really argue for keeping him longer.

"You'll be pleased to know the new PSU in installed and working perfectly," Rodney reported to a meeting of the usual crew in the Conference Room. "We still have to run diagnostics on all the systems, fix any problems created by the malfunctioning PSU but ... it looks like we're out of the woods on this one."

"Well done Rodney," Elizabeth congratulated them, "... _all_ of you." Teyla had filled Doctor Weir in on the basics of the mission the previous day so she was aware of what they'd had to do to make that happen.

"Well we couldn't have done it without a lot of help," Sheppard denied sole claim to the credit. "Without Patentia and Gratia we'd be stuck back there."

"The Ancestors existence in the higher plain is not as we expected," Teyla offered. "These Nahtoo, both corporeal and Ascended, appear to be formidable enemies."

"Enough that the Ancients have changed the entire focus of their race," Sheppard agreed. "Everything they do is based on defence only. They've given up on Ascension and they make no attempts to develop anything to defeat the Nahtoo."

"That would explain why the non interference policy is so deeply ingrained," Elizabeth said. "I'm surprised a race capable of the advances we see here would let themselves be cowed so completely."

"It's a vicious cycle," Sheppard pointed out. "The Ascended Nahtoo act as a pretty convincing threat to stop the Ascended Ancients from stepping out of line and they in turn police each other and punish any of their kind who threaten that."

"I suspect punishments delivered directly to the unascended Ancients are also a deterrent for action from New Atlantis itself," Teyla suggested grimly. "The Ascended Ancestors must have some means of controlling their own people to ensure they follow the rules set down by the Nahtoo."

"There's one thing that's bugging me," Sheppard said intently. "At the end there Gratia said that from the moment I first made contact she saw it as a sign that things should change ... when she was still Ascended she also said she knew of us from the moment I accessed the Dequitas device."

"You think ...," Teyla trailed off uncertainly.

"The nine symbol gate address didn't come from the device like I assumed," Sheppard suggested. "That first time I _did_ establish real communications between us and them ... it was all too quick for me to perceive but _not_ for an Ascended being. Somehow from that contact Gratia knew the city was in trouble and that they had the means to help us – she _gave_ me that address and made sure we'd be forced to use it."

"Would not the other Ascended beings have stopped her from interfering so blatantly?" Teyla asked quizzically.

"You'd think so," Sheppard agreed, "but this isn't the first time I've noticed a certain ... flexibility in how they interpret their own rules."

"Is there any chance these Nahtoo will pursue us beyond their own realm?" Elizabeth looked from Rodney to John expectantly.

"Gratia couldn't say for sure," Sheppard admitted. "What she did admit though it that they stepped in with us because as a group they agreed the Nahtoo having a focus outside the higher plain would be a bad thing ... I suspect that means they _would_ act collectively to stop them from attacking us here."

"I might be able to offer more information on that front," Rodney said, holding up his data pad. "While Sheppard was checking out the New Atlantis library I went on a tour of the city. Their technology isn't compatible with ours but they do have some remnant access points. Patentia allowed me to plug in and download some of their database for historic purposes – maybe there's something in there about the Nahtoo."

Rodney paused before continuing, speaking more rapidly like he was in a hurry to get the last part out before anyone could protest. "I've also got information about New Atlantis, plus the other cities and settlements there ... including all the gate addresses."

"You aren't suggesting we go back there?" Doctor Weir asked incredulously.

"Maybe," Rodney admitted. "They have a lot of advanced technology Elizabeth ... who knows what help they could provide in defeating the Wraith ... not to mention the Replicators!"

"So you're seeing them as potential allies now?" Elizabeth asked in surprise. "Even though the people of New Atlantis were reluctant to help this time?"

"If we send a team of non ATA gene holders they wouldn't draw the attention of the Ascended Nahtoo," Rodney explained. "Plus we'd need some special eye gear to you know ... counteract the effects of the higher spectrum visual environment. We could go back ... see what help the Ancients would be willing to offer. We wouldn't even have to go to New Atlantis itself. The Stargate is located a long way from the city – we could Gate in and straight to one of the other Gates before anyone even knew we were there."

"That is a _bad_ idea Rodney," Sheppard said heatedly. "We were lucky to get away from there this time ... if we risk another mission we might well end up drawing another enemy here instead of gaining any kind of advantage." Turning to Elizabeth he added "the Ascended Nahtoo weren't the only threat. They have a large contingent of their own people there too, just like the Ancients. From what Ronon and Teyla reported, they have advanced weapons and defence tactics we've never seen before. The Ancients might stop the Ascended Nahtoo from coming here but ... there's no reason to believe the same is true for their corporeal brothers ... especially if we do something to provoke their attention."

"They did have some impressive shielding technology," Ronon offered. "It may have only been because they were unfamiliar with our weapons that Teyla and I were able to overcome them so easily this time."

"How likely is it these corporeal Nahtoo will be interested in Atlantis?" Elizabeth asked for some kind of risk assessment.

"They were very interested in apprehending us," Teyla revealed. "I suspect if given the opportunity to get here they may very well take the risk."

"I got out of there pretty quickly once they showed up," Sheppard added, "but ... I can't tell you if they got all the way into the clearing before the Gate shut down."

"And if they did ...," Elizabeth trailed off without finishing that sentence.

"We have the Gate shield," Teyla reminded everyone. "Would that not be enough to deter any attacks?"

"No shield is infallible," Sheppard denied. "The iris back on Earth has been breached in the past by an entity with close ties to the Ascended plain - we'd be negligent if we just assume our shield is impenetrable in a similar situation."

There was a moments silence as everyone thought about the ramifications of that, no one willing to allow the possibility of a third formidable enemy when the two they had were already more than they could handle.

"There's something else we need to consider," Sheppard offered reluctantly. "From what Gratia told me the Nahtoo essentially created that place for themselves when they learned how to Ascend. She also mentioned the Ori - clearly their realm is different from the one we've just visited."

"So?" Rodney couldn't see the point in repeated something they all knew.

"So the higher plain isn't what we thought it was McKay," Sheppard said insistently. "When I was speaking with the Hologram here she made it clear there have been a number of different groups of Ascended Ancients throughout their whole history ... she also didn't discount that it might make a difference where they Ascended from. Maybe there's another higher plain out there where Ancients Ascended from Earth reside ... hell there could be one for every race we know existed that's no longer around."

"The Ancients do seem to be creatures of habit," Rodney allowed, "so it's possible if they have set up their own little higher plain they'd do the whole Stargate network thing ... I'd be surprised if they didn't have some kind of corporeal presence there too because they can't seem to resist playing overlord to lesser races - the whole seeding life throughout the galaxy thing."

"Without an address book it's unlikely we could find them," Sheppard pointed out the obvious, "but it bears thinking about in case we ever do stumble across another nine symbol Gate address."

"I don't think we can make any decisions about further Gate travel involving the ninth chevron," Elizabeth stood, drawing the meeting to a close. "The SGC and the IOA will need to be informed ... in the end it will be their call regarding any future missions to this or any other plain of existence. For now, let's call this one a win and refocus our attention back on the Replicators and the Wraith."

Elizabeth led the procession out of the conference room ... Ronon and Teyla following her with Sheppard and McKay bringing up the rear.

"Do you think the corporeal Nahtoo saw our gate address?" Rodney paused to ask worriedly.

"I hope not," Sheppard replied grimly.

**The End!**

**Authors Notes:**

All the information about power supply units, including symptoms of problems, came from Wikipedia.

Dequitas (De from defero meaning communicate and quitas from loginquitas meaning distance) from transexp dot com free Latin to English translation

The Nahtoo (Natu meaning by birth), from transexp dot com free Latin to English translation

Hieronymus (Jerome), meaning sacred name; Gratia (Grace) from freereg dot rootsweb dot com fslash howto fslash latinnames dot htm

Thanks for reading ... hope to see you stopping by for my next story. Until then ...


End file.
